Coming Back to Earth
by The Girl in the Red Jacket
Summary: The story of two Rangers' relationship, with many bumps along the way. *Slash* m/m relationships. Go away if you don't like it! This was previously posted but is changed so it no longer includes NC-17 stuff. Read the warning in the prologue. I've added an
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.  
  
Warning: This is slash! That means two males will be engaged in a sexual relationship. If you don't care of stories of this nature press the back button. I won't be posting anything NC-17 on ff.net. If you want those parts e-mail me at girl_in_the_red_jacket@hotmail.com and I'll send them to you. If there's an NC-17 part that goes with the chapter it will be indicated in the author's note. If there's is a purely NC-17 chapter it will be indicated in the author's note of the previous chapter.  
  
Author's Note: This is my first slash story so be nice and give me feedback! Any comments (other than pointless bashes) are more than welcome! And thanks to my beta, Mandi for catching my screwups! *Grins* Any remaining mistakes is me being stubborn.  
  
Prologue  
  
Tommy sighed as he collapsed into bed, curling up on his side. It had been a busy day. He smiled softly. One thing was for sure, he had good friends. They had all somehow managed to contact him today, trying to keep his mind off things. He had really needed that.  
  
If Rocky and Kim hadn't shown up on his doorstep that morning he knew he would have stayed curled up miserably in bed all day. But they had come. Armed with blueberry pancakes, somewhat forced smiles and a lot of Rocky's bad jokes, they had managed to draw him out of his bedroom and eventually out of the apartment. Tommy loved them for trying to help him, was thankful for the effort, but as hard as they had tried it hadn't really helped.   
  
It still hurt. Even after five years it still hurt; the same burning intensity that it had at first.   
Tommy wasn't going to deny that he did have better days more often now; dragging himself out of bed wasn't quite the chore that it had been in the first weeks and months. But the wound that scarred him still throbbed with a deep, if slightly duller, pain and Tommy knew it would be a long time before it healed, if it ever did.  
  
Rolling over, Tommy reached out for the picture that was always on the table beside his bed. He lovingly ran his fingers over the glass, tracing the face that smiled up at him from beside his own. He could still feel the strong arms wrapping around his waist and pulling him close as they did behind the glass. He had to lie back as tears flooded him.  
  
Closing his eyes, Tommy could remember the moment the picture captured as if it had just passed. He could feel his lover's arms holding him, drawing him against the solid chest as they kissed and remembering how sweet the taste of that warm tongue had been when it was in a gentle duel with his own.   
  
The smell of shampoo and soap and something else simply indescribable that made up his lover's scent no longer lingered in the sheets or house they once shared but Tommy could remember it as vividly as if he still had his head resting on his lover's shoulder. The deep, husky whisper of a murmured 'I love you' still sounded in his ears when he was lonely and he could picture a pair of laughing, deep brown eyes twinkling as they smiled at him when they were wrapped in each other's arms. Every detail of his love lived on in his memories.  
  
A chocked sob wrenched its way through the silent house, bubbling up from inside of Tommy before he could think to stop it. A trail of moisture slipped down his cheek and that first tear of the day brought an onslaught of others. The pain surged around him as intensely as it had five years ago when a heart monitor let out a shrill beep and he had been left in a lonely, cold world because his lover, his life, was taken from him. He wept as he had then, for losing a love that swallowed him so deeply he didn't know which was up and which way was down but knew he was loved so fully, so completely, that he no longer cared if he ever reached the surface.   
  
The gasping sobs continued until weariness took a firm hold of him and his body was forced to give into its exhaustion. The day had been too long, as had the many days before it. Tommy's heavy heart still cried for his lost love and even the void of sleep couldn't stop his weeping. Tears continued to streak down his face long after he had been taken over by sleep.  
  
Later, when Tommy had sunk into an uneasy slumber, a figure appeared in the shadows of the room. He eased onto the bed beside Tommy, reaching out to gently wipe away the still falling tears. He carefully shifted the sleeper into his arms without waking him and pressed a tender kiss against his creased brow as he slowly ran his hands over Tommy's body, trying to ease away some of the tension that kept him from relaxing.   
  
The figure sighed as he wrapped Tommy tightly in the warmth of his body. Tommy murmured a few incoherent words softly and snuggled further into his embrace. The lines on his forehead disappeared as he began to relax. Some part of him suspected who was holding him and his eyes fluttered as his heart urged him toward wakefulness.   
  
"Shh. Sleep. I'm here now." The deep voice soothed, "I'll be here later, when you're rested."  
  
Tommy recognized the voice in an instant and sighed in contentment as he started to slip back towards sleep, his mind untroubled. He relaxed and let himself drift off in what he now knew to be his lover's arms. He wasn't sure whether he was dreaming or not but he decided he didn't care. If he was dreaming, he hoped he never woke up.  
  
Just before sleep took him completely, he heard the voice whisper to him again. The three simple words brought a gentle rush of warmth to his soul. "I love you."   
  
Opening one eye halfway and looking up at his lover's face he murmured, "I love you too, Jason." 


	2. Set Up

Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize though I wish I owned Jason and Tommy. The things I would do if I did! *drool*  
  
Author's notes: Thank you Pam for reviewing. There are no NC-17 scenes that go with this chapter. Maybe in the next one okay? PLEASE REVIEW!! I can't get enough feedback.  
  
Chapter 1  
Set Up  
  
It was the general consensus of their former girlfriends that Jason and Tommy had always been meant for each other; they were just too boneheaded to admit it to themselves and each other. Kim had been the first to come to that conclusion, though it took her time and a fair bit of distance to realize it completely. The understanding that her white knight was secretly in love with his best friend of the same gender and not her was a bit of a shock at first.   
So she did the only thing she could think to do while still coming to terms with the realization.   
  
It would be later called the 'dreaded letter' when brought up in jest and Kim admitted it was a slightly callous way to break up with Tommy but any other way would have required a more detailed explanation. Kim wasn't sure if Tommy had admitted his feelings for Jason to himself much less anyone else so that detailed explanation as to why would have to be saved for when he was ready to hear it.   
  
Kim found out about a month later Tommy had taken up with Kat. She couldn't blame her blonde friend, not really. After all, she knew what it was like to get caught up in Tommy's, aloof, but warm, attitude and get lost in those adorable chocolate brown eyes of his. She did however have a few choice words about men and their inability to figure anything out without first being given a swift blow to the back of the head. She contented herself with knowing that once Kat got a little closer she would see the intense attraction between the 'two blockheaded imbeciles' as Kim was now calling them.   
  
Kat saw soon after she started dating Tommy that his heart belonged to someone else but she always thought the first Pink Ranger was the owner. On the way to Muranthias she figured out it was not Kim whom Tommy still loved. The petite gymnast's name may have been the one on his lips but, as the travelled on the Ghost Galleon, it was Jason's picture he held.  
  
Soon after they got underway, Kat noticed that Tommy was missing from the ranks. She found him sitting on a crate near the back of the ship, smoothing a thumb over the image of Jason and trying to regain some control as tears streaked down his face. It was evident to Kat then who held Tommy's heart. You could tell by the way he stroked his fingers over the picture that he had more than brotherly feelings for Jason. She considered approaching him but decided against it. Some things you just don't intrude on, and Kat could tell this was one of those things.   
  
The deep look of longing and pain in Jason's eyes, even under the Maligore's corruption, as Tommy tried to help Kim, did not go unnoticed by Kat either. It looked as though he too thought Kim to be the object of Tommy's affection and was clearly not happy about it. Knowing that Jason had to have some sort of feelings for Tommy eased some of Katherine's apprehension. She was too fond of Tommy to see his heart broken, which, she would later say, got her into the middle of Kim's match maker plans in the first place.  
  
Kat spent half of the ride home watching as Tommy and Jason snuck glances when the other wasn't looking. It was quite amusing and she was having a hard time not giggling at the two of them when Kim made a comment that caught her off guard. "Caught on to it, have you?"  
  
Kat very nearly jumped. She hadn't realized the former Pink Ranger was behind her or that she had discovered what Kat had. "You knew?"  
  
Kim grinned and nodded her head pointedly in the direction of the door. Kat had followed, looking expectantly at her predecessor when the doors shut with a slight hiss, putting them out of hearing range, and started besieging her with questions. "Well? How long have you known? Did Tommy tell you? Are they going out secretly or something? Why in the world did he start dating me?"  
  
"Relax, Kat. We've got a few hours to talk about this. But maybe we should find somewhere more private. I don't think it would be a very good thing if say, Justin, walked in on the conversation." Kim suggested.   
  
"Hmm. It probably wouldn't be the best idea for him to overhear us, or for Bulk and Skull to." Kat could clearly see Kim's point. Discussing their two friends' feelings for each other in front of the new, young Blue Ranger or the two former bullies was not high on her list of priorities. However, satisfying her curiosity about the whole event was.   
  
"The engine room!" Kat exclaimed suddenly. "It's perfect. These are new Zords and there's nothing wrong with them yet. No one has any reason to be going down there!"  
  
Kim giggled at Kat's enthusiasm as the blond girl grabbed her hand and promptly lead her down to the Zord's large and noisy engine. It was loud enough so that if anyone did come in they wouldn't hear the girl's topic of discussion but not loud enough to keep them from chatting. Once they were there, Kat was all ears for whatever Kim had to say.  
  
"Alright, spill it! Tell me!" Kat insisted before they had even made it fully through the door.  
  
"What exactly would you like to know?" Kim asked. She was not above teasing her replacement a little.  
  
"Only everything! And spare no details, please! Ever since Adam and Tanya hooked up I have had very few chances for any girl talk not to mention that this may be the juiciest piece of gossip I have ever managed to stumble upon. Well, except the fact my friends liked to wear spandex and run around fighting monsters. But that's beside the point." Kat reminded herself. It wasn't usual for her to get flustered but she had been rather lonely for another female friend since Tanya and Adam had become a couple and all but joined at the hip.   
  
"What was the point?" Kim wondered.  
  
"For you to tell me everything. Now." Kat replied.  
  
"Well," Kim started. She was as ready to gossip as much as Kat was and seeing as Kat was Tommy's current girlfriend it was her right to know what Kim had deduced on her own. "I know for sure that Jason is gay and has a crush on Tommy. That is concrete. It came directly from the source."  
  
"Directly from the source?" Kat echoed in confusion.  
  
Kim nodded. "Jason told me. That's what the whole scuba diving thing was about. He hasn't told anyone yet but he's planning to soon. I'm the first person in the States to know. Zack and Trini only know because they were there when he was figuring it out. He had a hard time telling me. He knows he's always going to be Jason to me, no matter what, but he was nervous as hell and could hardly get the words out."  
  
"He's certainly done a good job of hiding it from the rest of us! Oh! That must have been hard for him!" Kat commented, feeling sorry for the former Gold Ranger. "How do you know he's got a crush on Tommy? Other than the obvious reasons of course. Did he tell you?"  
  
"I asked him and he said yes but he didn't have to. He was blushing so badly that I knew it was true. He really is quite cute when he's all frazzled. Not something you would normally see..."  
  
Their conversation soon turned into a complete girl talk session. By the time Adam and Tanya came to find them they had covered and analysed every possible aspect they could think of to Tommy and Jason's relationship or lack thereof, the letter and the actual reasons behind it, if Kim had dated anyone since (She had been on a few dates with some guys in the facility she trained at, but nothing serious.), who she would like to be dating (Rocky), who Kat had been interested in and still was to an extend (Billy) and how they were going to get Jason and Tommy together.   
  
When the other two Rangers entered the room, they quickly hushed up and wouldn't say anything further than they had been chatting while exchanging secret smiles. Tanya's eyes narrowed at that.   
  
"You're hiding something." She stated calmly.  
  
Kat sighed and said very seriously, "You're right Tanya. We should have told you sooner. I'm pregnant. Prince Gasket is the father."  
  
"That's not biologically possible, is it?" Adam asked his eyes widening.   
  
Kim and Kat burst out into a flood of giggles at the young man's befuddled expression. Even Tanya had to laugh as Adam flushed a deep shade of crimson that made him look rather like a curly haired tomato.  
  
"Oh Adam, darling, you know I love you, but really you're very naive sometimes." Tanya chuckled.  
  
"Yeah, Kermit. Look up, it says gullible." Kim teased.   
  
Adam flushed an even brighter red but cracked a small smile. "Alright, you've had your fun." He said, waving off the good natured laughter. "We're almost home. Just thought you might like to know and by the looks you're giving me I see if I stay I'm going to be the blunt end of more jokes so if you'll excuse me."  
  
As soon as he was out the door Tanya turned back to her friends, "Okay, spill it. What's up? It looks like you've discovered a fairly juicy piece of gossip that you know you want to share with me."  
  
"We would, Tanya, really but it isn't our place to tell you. It's sort of private. We wouldn't keep anything about ourselves from you," Kat added quickly, "but it's not about us. And I don't think that the person whose secret we know would appreciate it if we told anyone just yet."  
  
Tanya raised an eyebrow, "This isn't going to be a secret for long then?"  
  
"I doubt it." Kim told her. "The person, well, they just need a little time before they're ready to tell everyone. Honestly. Kat guessed. That's the only reason she knows."  
  
"Alright, as long as I do find out eventually I won't press for details." Tanya conceded. "But you might want to come back into the main compartment since we're going to be at the Power Chamber in about oh," Tanya quickly glanced at her watch, "five minutes."  
  
"Wow." Kim commented quietly to Kat as the three girls climbed back up the stairs leading from the engine room. "That went quickly. And to think, I used to hate long trips in the Zords!"  
  
Kat told Jason before the tournament began that she knew of his sexual orientation. She had watched, shocked, as he cringed as if he had been hit and seemed to wait for her to tear into him. When she had placed a gentle hand on his arm and spoken kind, instead of harsh, words all the tension seemed to melt off of him. He had hugged her warmly before he left, and thanked her for understanding, and in that moment Katherine realized that Jason wasn't just the invincible hero she had always thought him to be. He could be just as desperately afraid as she could be; though his fear stemmed from a prejudice he had experienced first hand and hadn't been able to stop.   
  
If anything Jason's surprising reaction spurred Kat on. Kim had decided, even before Jason had revealed his orientation to her, that is was time to do something about her two former leaders. If they hadn't admitted it by now, chances were they were too stubborn or too nervous to admit it all. That is, unless they had a matchmaker friend or two to intervene. And with Kat on board to help her it would make setting them up even easier.  
  
So, it was only natural that the two girls would take on the role cupid had been neglecting.  
  
Their plan took action on the Saturday after the tournament, before Kim had to go back to Florida. It went off without a hitch, both young men not thinking anything of it when they were asked to meet in the quiet, usually deserted area of the park by one of their friends.   
Tommy was surprised, however, when he saw Jason sitting and waiting for him on the grassy knoll in the park instead of Kat.   
  
"Hey, what are you doing here?" Tommy asked, somewhat surprised.  
  
"Kim told me to meet her here. She wouldn't tell me why. What about you?" Jason inquired.   
  
"Kat told me to meet here her." Tommy grinned ruefully. "Looks like we've been set up, bro."  
  
He meant it as a joke, even though he suspected it was true, but Jason paled. "Not us, me."  
  
"You?" Tommy echoed.   
  
"They set me up." Jason sighed. "I need to tell you something, Tommy, something important."   
  
"And the girls already know?" Tommy commented. That was a bit different. Usually Tommy was the first to know if he had some sort of secret.  
  
"Yeah, I told Kim. Kat kind of figured it out by herself. I would have told you first but I was scared and I knew Kim would understand." Jason told me. "I'm not sure you will. I hope you will but I can't know for sure."  
  
"Jase, you know I'll always understand. Or even if I don't understand I'll never abandon you." Tommy assured him.   
  
Jason took a deep breath and forced the words out without meeting Tommy's eyes. "I'm gay."  
  
There were a few moments of deafening silence that Jason thought he would suffocate in before Tommy sputtered out, "What?!"  
  
Jason stiffened. He didn't need this. He wasn't sure how well he would deal if Tommy rejected their long time friendship, even after all they had been though together, simply because of his sexual orientation. He wasn't sure how he'd take more rejection. If that was what Tommy was planning to do than Jason wasn't going to make it any easier for him.   
  
"I'm gay, Tommy." He repeated firmly.  
  
Only it sounded more like, "I'm gammpf!" because he hadn't even gotten the words out before Tommy pounced on him.  
  
Jason ended up flat on his back, Tommy's lips pressing tightly against his. It took his shocked mind a moment to catch up with the rest of him but when he realized what was happening he responded passionately. He poked his tongue at Tommy's lips, moaning softly when he was granted entry. Their tongues duelled, hesitantly at first, but with growing confidence as the seconds wore on. When they ended the kiss, and they only did so because air became necessary, Jason had taken control as a hungry he had long shoved aside roared back.  
  
It took a few moments after they had broken apart for Tommy to move from his comfortable position half on top of Jason but when he did he quickly scrambled off Jason and out of the heated embrace. Flushing with embarrassment, he began to stutter out apologies. "Oh God, Jase! I'm sorry! I shouldn't have presumed you would want to...I... I didn't mean to...but when you said...I can't believe I actually did that! I..."  
  
"Tommy!" Jason interrupted him, seeing as he wasn't going to get around to a point, or a complete sentence, any time soon. "It's okay. I don't mind. Really, I don't mind at all, but do you think you could tell me what that was about?"  
  
Tommy blushed even further and smiled sheepishly, hesitantly meeting Jason's eyes. "I've wanted, for so long, to be able to kiss you but...but I never thought you would be interested in another guy. I always figured I had no chance with you and didn't want to take the risk because I knew I couldn't lose you as my friend. I was so scared you would hate me for...wanting you as much as I do."  
  
Jason reached out, running a hair through Tommy's long hair before he spoke, "I would never hate you. Even if I didn't feel the same way I wouldn't hate you."  
  
Tommy's head jerked up at that comment. "What?! You…You…"  
  
Jason leered at him, "I've only had a thing for you since you came back as the White Ranger!"  
  
"That long?" Tommy wondered incredulously.  
  
Jason flushed slightly. "Yeah. When you came back I was so excited to see you but there were also a lot of other things I started to feel for you too. It was all confusing, to say the least. I didn't understand any of it until later, when I had sorted myself out."   
  
Tommy nodded in understanding. "When you left for the Peace Conference...I never really told you how badly your leaving affected me. It was horrible. I missed you so badly. It felt like I had lost apart of myself. I had already started analyzing my feelings for Kim and for girls in general, but that was what really made me start thinking about what I felt for you." It was   
Tommy's turn to blush at that. "I had some...uh...pretty interesting thoughts sometimes."  
  
"Why didn't you say anything?" Jason asked.   
  
Tommy shrugged. "Probably the same reason you didn't say anything. I was afraid to. I know you would never desert me or anything but I thought you might be a bit weirded out. I didn't want it to drive us apart."  
  
"It wouldn't have. I don't think anything could." Jason said softly, taking Tommy's hand. He titled his head, studying Tommy for a moment before he went on, "Have you ever known anyone who was homophobic?"  
  
"No." Tommy replied, shaking his head. He could see the hurt the dark eyes and knew there was more to that question than Jason was saying. "You have, haven't you?"  
  
Jason hesitated for a moment before nodding. "There was a small, but vocal, group at the Peace Conference that was very homophobic. I never came out there except to Trini and Zack. I wasn't ready to and neither was Darrius. But I saw what it was like for the openly gay students. I've never felt so mad or helpless in my life. These were nice people, who did nothing to deserve being harassed, and nothing they, or anyone else, did could convince those...those damn bigots of that."  
  
Jason sighed, "I never said anything. I mean, I made it clear that I disagreed with them and that I found their views disgusting but I never told anyone I was gay, I kept it a secret so only three people knew. I just...I never fit in at the Peace Conference to begin with. It was a great experience and all but being there never felt right to me. I didn't want anything else to make my life more uncomfortable."  
  
Jason chewed his bottom lip in agitation and sadness, "And, my father...He's always been a bit homophobic. Not to the point where he would say anything to anyone who was gay but he's never been in support of same sex relationships. He didn't really take my coming out very well."  
  
"What happened?" Tommy asked in concern and a bit of horror at the thought. He didn't know what he would do if either of his parent disapproved of him. Their love and support of him was something Tommy had always cherished.  
  
"I would have been kicked out of the house if it wasn't for my mom. She didn't care, expected it even. After I told them my dad started yelling at me and she came to my defence. She says she's working on him, that he'll come around." Jason sighed.  
  
"But?" Tommy prompted.  
  
"But he hasn't spoken to me since I told them. I'm going back and forth between trying to talk to him and making myself scarce. He just ignores me completely, like I'm not even there." Jason replied miserably.   
  
"I'm sorry." Tommy murmured.  
  
Jason shrugged. "It could be worse. My mom is great, she's been really supportive, and my room is in the basement so I can avoid him if I have to."  
  
The words were flat and dull. Tommy could plainly see his father's rejection hurt more than Jason cared to admit. Hesitating because he was unsure of how to proceed, Tommy scooted closer to Jason and pulled him into a close hug. It was awkward at first but after a few moments both boys began to relax slowly.   
  
Tommy ended up with his arm around Jason's shoulders and had Jason's arm loosely around his waist. He was holding Jason's free hand, with their fingers entwined, and had to say he loved the feeling of sitting like that with him. Judging by the way Jason let his head rest on Tommy's shoulder and gave a soft sigh of contentment; the former Ranger was pleased as well.   
  
"This is nice." Tommy murmured.  
  
"Yeah," Jason agreed. He shifted slightly so he could look into Tommy's chocolate eyes.   
"What do you think? Should we give 'us' a try? Do you want a...well, do you want to have a boyfriend kind of relationship with me?" Jason asked, blushing faintly. It would be so much easier if he knew how this kind of thing worked! His relationships numbered two. One had been initiated by another and they had kept it secret. The other "relationship", the one he had shared with Emily, had been a cover up for both parties involved.  
  
Tommy raised his head off Jason's chest slightly, smiling at him. He pressed a short, teasing kiss to Jason's lips before answering. "What do you think?"  
  
Jason grinned widely before leaning in for a more involved kiss that made Tommy moan softly. When they had parted at the lips he was a bit dizzy and not from lack of oxygen. He had tried to make himself love Kim, or at least like her to the extent she liked him, but he had never managed getting passed very good friends even when they were dating. Kat had been a comfort when he had been hurt by Kim, then a cover and he was ashamed of the fact he had used her a bit, though unconsciously at first.   
  
He had never gone very far with either girl but he had kissed each of his former girlfriends, and not sparingly either. In the beginning he had tried to feel what he thought he should be feeling for both of them, but it hadn't worked and while the kisses they shared had meant something to him, he had never felt anything much during them, or even in more intimate moments.  
  
Kissing Jason was different. It was an amazing feeling, one he didn't no how to properly put into words. He did know that he wanted to continue kissing Jason and had a hard time tearing himself away from those firm lips even when the need for air became desperate. Fortunately, it seemed like he would be able to indulge himself in the pleasant business of getting to know Jason's mouth much better.  
  
They resumed their former loose hug with a few changes. Tommy was now sitting half in Jason's lap and facing sideways with his arms around the broad back. Jason had both his arms wrapped around Tommy's back, drawing him close enough to be able to smell the fresh scent of the shampoo he used in the long locks.   
  
"Jase?" Tommy said softly after a few moments of simply relishing their closeness.  
  
"Mmm?" Jason replied lazily, perfectly content to just stay sitting there in silence.  
  
"Who's Darrius?" Tommy inquired.  
  
Jason smiled softly in remembrance, "My now ex-boyfriend in Geneva."  
  
"Oh." Tommy was surprised at the squeaky sort of sound he made in response to that answer.   
  
Jason would have chuckled had it not been Tommy in his arms. "We broke up when he went back to Canada, about two months before I came home."  
  
"You had a boyfriend." Tommy managed.  
  
"Does that bother you?" Jason asked, keeping his voice neutral.  
  
"No...Yes...No..." Tommy replied, unsure of why it was bothering him as much as it was. "I figured you would have been in relationships before only I always thought you'd done what I did and tried to have a girlfriend. Why should the fact you've had a boyfriend be any different?"  
  
"Because you wish it had been you, that this was a first time thing for both of us." Jason told him. "And, in a way, I wish it had been that way as well but I'm also glad it isn't. I learned a lot from Darrius, since he was about a year and a half older and had had boyfriends before. I'm glad I got to have that experience."  
  
Jason paused to press his lips tenderly again Tommy's temple, "But even while I was going out with him I had feelings for you. Only I never thought I had a chance to be with you so I buried them. I liked Darrius a lot, he's a great guy, but never in the time we dated did I ever feel half as much for him as I do for you."   
  
Tommy blushed faintly and squirmed a bit, and not only because he had been a bit jealous of a person he had never met. It was rare for Jason to talk about what he was feeling, in that much detail, even to Tommy. And while Tommy was certainly not the type of person to particularly like mushy moments, he decided he definitely enjoyed hearing how deeply Jason cared for him.   
  
Trying to play it off like the words hadn't had as much effect on him as they had, Tommy grinned. "It's a bit silly, I guess. After all, I'm the one sitting with you now, aren't I?"  
  
"And I'm glad you are." Jason replied with a smile. "But it's not that silly. I mean, for the longest time I was jealous of Kim!"  
  
Tommy laughed out loud at that. "Oh man! She would love to know that!"   
  
"But you're not going to tell her, are you?" Jason tried, and failed, to sound threatening.  
  
"I dunno Jase, that's a pretty good piece of blackmail." Tommy mentioned. "Kim would find it very interesting."  
  
"She probably would but she won't find out." Jason said.  
  
"No? And what's going to stop me from telling her?" Tommy teased.  
  
"Me." Jason replied.  
  
The friendly bantering soon turned into a tickle war. Tommy started it when he couldn't think of a reply and instead tickled Jason's ribs, which he knew were ticklish from previous experience. Jason won the fight simply because Tommy was much more ticklish than he was.   
  
When Tommy finally called out, "Alright! You win!", and Jason stopped, satisfied, they  
had managed to get into a somewhat compromising position.   
  
Jason was straddling Tommy's hips, his hand's resting on Tommy's sides, and they were both rather flushed. It was actually very innocent. The only way Jason could keep Tommy from twisting away while he tickled his stomach was to pin him down like that and his hands had to go somewhere after he stopped the tickling attack. They were both flushed because they were laughing, although it was safe to say they had another reason for flushing when the tickling stopped.  
  
It was a bit awkward; finding themselves like that but after a few moments where neither boy moved or spoke Jason gave into his instincts and leaned down to kiss Tommy. Tommy responded to the gentle pressure enthusiastically, parting his lips to let Jason's tongue slid inside his mouth and lifting his arms around Jason's neck as the kiss deepened. Their tongues twined together as they leisurely explored each other's mouth.  
  
When they parted, both breathing more heavily than before, Tommy was even more embarrassed than before. He gently slid out of Jason's embrace so he could sit but when the other boy slid an arm around his waist he returned the gesture.   
  
"What's wrong?" Jason inquired softly, hoping he hadn't done something to make his new boyfriend uncomfortable.  
  
Tommy blushed even more, turning a shade of red that would have been humorous under other circumstances. "You and Darrius, you...well, if you dated for awhile you must have...um..."  
  
"Fooled around a bit?" Jason filled in. Tommy nodded silently, waiting for Jason to go on. "Yeah, we did. We dated for nearly two years, Tommy."  
  
"It doesn't bother me or anything." Tommy put in quickly. "It's just that...well, I've never been with another guy, or anyone else, before."  
  
"You're still a virgin." Jason summarized.  
  
Tommy nodded again. "Kim and I did a bit but not much. We were never even fully naked around each other. And Kat...I never got passed kissing her. I basically don't have any experience."   
  
"So?" Jason had reacted in much the same way when he and Darrius had first started their relationship and knew it had helped when his former boyfriend hadn't made a big deal out of it. "Tommy, it doesn't matter to me that you're not experienced. I'm not all that experienced myself."  
  
"Are you a virgin?" Tommy asked, and then blushed at the question. "I shouldn't ask that. Sorry."  
  
"Don't be. And no, I'm not." Jason replied.   
  
"Oh." Tommy managed softly.  
  
"I really don't have that much experience." Jason told him earnestly. "I've only ever been with Darrius and we had sex twice."  
  
Seeing that didn't do much to make Tommy feel better Jason continued. "I didn't have any experience when we started going out either and I think Darrius actually had quite a bit of fun teaching me. And you know I'm not going to push you into doing anything sooner than you want to."  
  
Tommy smiled a bit ruefully. "Sorry. I know I'm being stupid, again, but I'm kind of new to this."  
  
"Don't worry. I am too, really." Jason told him. "And I've got the feeling it's going to be at least fun becoming un-new, if nothing else."  
  
"I hope it's something else too." Tommy murmured as he cuddled closer to Jason.  
  
Jason grinned. "So do I."  
  
Tommy sat silently for a moment before another, lighter, thought tiptoed across his mind. It made him chuckled and at Jason's questioning glance he said, "Kat and Kim set both of us up. They knew this would happen."  
  
Jason's smile grew even broader, "I don't doubt it."   
  
"We should...repay them somehow." Tommy suggested in mock innocence, the wheels of his mind already turning.  
  
"Damn right." Jason agreed. "I wonder if Kim's still as scared of spiders as she used to be..." 


	3. Parents

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.  
  
Chapter 2  
Set Up  
  
Kim and Katherine's repayment ended up not involving spiders but, instead, four canisters of shaving cream Jason managed to rig up so they sprayed the foam as soon as the door was opened. It semi backfired on them since only one of their intended targets got hit. Both Kim and Tanya ended up covered in the frothy cream while Kat, who had stopped to go back and get her purse before they reached the front door of her house, laughed hysterically at the site of her friends.  
  
Tanya swore revenge after Kim oh so helpfully told her who she suspected was behind the shaving cream. It very nearly escalated into full blown prank war when Tanya accidentally got Adam soaked instead of the current and former leaders. Adam, in turn, scared Kat with a fake rat instead of his girlfriend.   
  
It ended when Rocky nearly missed one of his physiotherapy sessions because Kat sabotaged Adam's car. Tanya ended up driving Rocky to the clinic while Tommy fixed Adam's beat up, old Volvo. A truce was called then. Everyone had been 'gotten' in some way or another and none of them wanted it to escalate to the point where someone could get accidentally hurt.  
  
Jason and Tommy decided to keep their relationship secret for awhile. Tommy wasn't really ready to come out yet, not even to his closest friends and Jason was more than willing to keep things under wraps for a little longer. He was still working to repair his now strained relationship with his father and was nearly glad he would have more time to prepare himself for his friends' reactions. He didn't think any of the former or current Rangers would have a problem with him or Tommy but he was still nervous.  
  
They did tell Kat and Kim that their match making plan had worked. Both girls were happy for them, though Kim couldn't resist pointing out to them how silly they had been as she had wanted to for months. While Jason listened to Kim's tirade on the stupidity of the male gender in general, Kat pulled Tommy away.  
  
"So I guess that's it for us huh?" Kat commented.  
  
Tommy's face fell a little and his gaze dropped down to the floor. "Kat, I'm..."  
  
"I know you're sorry, Tommy." Kat interrupted him. "And that you never meant to hurt me. I know all that. But I can't figure out why you even bothered to start dating me in the first place. I mean, after awhile I kind of figured you weren't in love with me, but I thought maybe it would grow over time. Why, if you knew we had no chance of working out, did you let me think we, as a couple, could go somewhere?"  
  
"I thought...When we first started dating I...Well...At first..." Tommy sighed. He didn't know how to explain what had been going through his mind at that point. "It did hurt, when Kim sent me that letter. Not so much because she'd broken my heart but because it felt as though I'd...failed somehow. For the longest time I've had a problem with failing..."  
  
"You try to be perfect so hard sometimes it's scary." Kat remarked, having made that observation not long after she joined the Ranger team. "But you don't do it as much anymore."  
  
"Good. I've been trying to not be as obsessed with failure lately." Tommy admitted. "But back then...Getting Kim's letter was a slap in the face. I had tried so hard to not screw up my relationship with her and it just fell apart. And I knew, no matter what Kim said, that it was my fault, that I couldn't give my all to her. I had these feelings for Jason and I didn't want to acknowledge them but I guess, to Kim at least, they were still noticeable."   
  
Tommy hesitantly met Kat's blue gaze for just a moment before staring past her, off to somewhere she couldn't see. "When I left the Youth Centre after getting that letter I went straight home and called Jason. As soon as Adam read those words all I could think of was calling him because I knew that he could make me feel better. And he did. As soon as I heard his voice it didn't hurt anymore."  
  
Tommy laughed at himself. "He was more than half asleep at first. I'd completely forgotten about the time change. He couldn't stop yawning but he wouldn't get off the phone until he was satisfied I was okay. It was the most ridiculous thing. He knew he was going to pay for the lost sleep in the morning but he listened to me and reassured me for nearly two hours. And when I got off the phone with him I fell apart completely. I sat in my room and cried for a good ten minutes because I missed the sound of his voice and because talking to him made me realize I missed just being with him even more."  
  
"I didn't want to deal with what that meant. I knew I cared for Jason. I even knew I cared for him more deeply than any of my other friends but I didn't, couldn't let myself think of him as more than a friend." Tommy told her.  
  
"Why not?" Kat asked, now thoroughly intrigued.  
  
"It was Jason. Hell, he's the last person I ever thought would be interested in another guy. And losing him was not ever an option. So when you ended up being my date instead of Heather I went along with it. I mean, you're every guy's fantasy! You are practically the definition of beautiful and you're an amazing person to boot. What more should a guy want?" Tommy chuckled a bit bitterly. "I wanted to be able to love you. I wanted to be attracted to you. I just...couldn't. No matter how much I wanted to I couldn't. I am so sorry I did that to you, Kat. You didn't deserve it."  
  
Tommy sighed softly before going on. "When I stopped fighting the fact I wasn't into girls in general was when Jason got back from the Peace Conference. I admit I ended up using you a bit because I didn't want him, or anyone, to know who I actually had feelings for. Then he lost the Gold Ranger powers..."  
  
"When he collapsed in the Youth Centre I was beyond worried. When Zordon said..." Tommy trailed off. Just thinking about how close he had come to losing Jason made him pale and he had to draw in a deep, if shaky, breath to continue. "When Zordon said that he could die...I thought my heart was going to stop beating."  
  
"Then there was that whole Divatox mess. I still haven't decided which was worse. He wasn't a Ranger anymore. He was supposed to be safe! And I knew that, if it came down to it, I wouldn't have been able to hurt him. If I had missed grabbing him when he was falling back into that lava..." Tommy looked haunted by the memory. "If he had died because of that I don't think it would have been too long before I followed him."  
  
Kat's eyes widened at that comment and she instinctively put her hand on his arm. "Don't say things like that Tommy."  
  
"Why not? It's true." Tommy shrugged, looking down so she would not see how upset he was. "I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if it had ended like that."  
  
"Thank God it didn't." A rough voice said from the doorway of the kitchen.  
  
Jason was standing there, Kim just a bit behind him, his eyes unusually shiny. It looked to Kat as if he was trying very hard not to cry and he obviously wanted to go to Tommy, but looked unsure. He knew that Kat and Kim accepted them being together but that didn't mean they would tolerate any open displays of affection.   
  
But Kat stepped back and gave Jason an encouraging half smile. That was enough for him. He immediately moved forward and kissed Tommy quickly before enfolding him in a tight hug. Tommy hugged him back, relishing the feeling of Jason's strong arms holding him close.   
  
Relaxing against the broad chest he murmured, "How long have you been standing there?"  
  
"Long enough." Jason replied thickly.   
  
"Oh." Tommy flushed slightly as he buried his head into the material covering Jason's shoulder.   
  
"Kat's right, you shouldn't say things like that." Jason told him gently. "If something happened to me I wouldn't want you to...to..."  
  
"I know but..." Tommy swallowed, "but if you had died on Muranthias, if you had died in that volcano, without knowing how I felt, because I couldn't save you...I don't think I could have survived that."  
  
"I'm glad everything worked out this way." Jason said softly, resolving to talk to Tommy later when they had more privacy.  
  
"Yeah..." Tommy slowly untangled himself from Jason's embrace, realizing that they had a bit of an audience.   
  
"Aw. You two look so cute together!" Kat told them when Jason kept a firm hold of Tommy's hand.  
  
"And after that PDA we definitely have full teasing rights." Kim added. "Now why can't I find something like that?"  
  
"I don't know Kim. Why don't you ask Rocky?" Jason replied with a sly grin.  
  
Kim's mouth dropped open and hit the floor with a thud. Kat looked equally surprised but managed to make a somewhat graceful save by starting to giggle at her friend's shocked expression. Jason caught the blonde's eye and smiled, his own deep chuckle sounded as he watched Kim sputter as she tried to say something to that.  
  
"How in the world?..." She managed at last.  
  
"What? You may think all men are completely blind but come on! Any fool could see Rocky's head over heels for you! Honestly, how unobservant do you think I am?" Jason asked with a grin.  
  
"When it comes to yourself?" Kim snorted. "If this," she gestured to him and Tommy "is any indication you wouldn't see a Mack truck until it ran over you!"  
  
"How come when we can't tell what our feelings are for each other we're unobservant Neanderthals but when you can't figure out Rocky likes you its perfectly normal?" Tommy questioned.  
  
"I would have either figured it out or taken a chance and asked him out. You two waited forever, had no plans of telling each other, and needed a push to get together." Kim retorted. "That's men for you."  
  
Tommy mock scowled at her before laughing. Suddenly less shy, he slipped an arm around Jason's waist and pulled him close. It earned him a startled, if happy, glance from the midnight eyes before his fingers were again laced with Jason's. He smiled at the two girls, who had knowing smiles painted across their faces.  
  
"Thank you for the pushing." Tommy said, half serious. "I'll put up with any teasing you two dish out for sticking us together."  
  
Kat snorted, a bit surprised but not unhappy about the display. "Sure. You think after that we'll be able to say anything bad about men in general around you again? You just thanked us for meddling and, on top of that, you keep doing all that lovey dovey stuff. Damn I need to find a man to get some of that myself!"  
  
Kim giggled. "You said it sister! Rocky better watch out! Just wait until I get my hands on him!"  
  
By the time Jason and Tommy had left Kat and Kim were working on their next match making plot. This time it was to get Rocky and Kim together. Jason pointed out before they left that poor Rocko didn't know what he was in for. Kim had shot back that his back had better be fine soon because by the time she was through with him he was going to need physiotherapy again.  
  
From there they'd gone to the park and walked around for a bit. Neither man wanted to go home. Jason never really wanted to go home anymore. The situation there hadn't improved and Jason got the impression that his father finding out he was in a relationship would probably not be a good thing. Tommy hadn't told his parents about him and Jason yet but he desperately wanted to. He hated keeping secrets from them. The Power Ranger thing was an exception, since that kept them out of danger for the most part, but this...this was different. He was planning on telling them just as soon as he could figure out how to say it.   
  
"How did you tell your parents you were gay?" Tommy asked breaking through the comfortable silence the two boys shared. It was getting late and the park was nearly deserted so they could hold hands without having to worry about people noticing.   
  
Jason sighed. That wasn't the fondest of memories. "I told my parents I had something to tell them at dinner one night. I basically stumbled around it for a few minutes before blurting it out. It wasn't the most articulate confession I've ever made and I probably sounded pretty stupid. I don't think you want to follow my lead on that one. Why? Are you planning of coming out to your folks soon?"  
  
"I'm thinking about it." Tommy admitted. "I want to tell them but I'm worried about how they'll react. I can't lose them, Jase."  
  
"I know." Jason replied.   
  
Jason knew how much Sarah and Thomas Oliver's approval meant to Tommy. Sometimes it seemed as though he lived for his parents' approval. Jason had once commented on it and Tommy had mumbled something about not needing to prove anything to them which was the problem in the first place. He wouldn't elaborate on that answer and, at the time, Jason had felt he shouldn't push his friend.   
  
"When I tell them...would you mind being there with me?" Tommy asked.  
  
"I don't mind. If you want me to be there I'll be there. But I don't think you'll have a problem with your parents." Jason tilted his head to look into his boyfriend's eyes. "I think they're as scared of losing you as you are of losing them."   
  
"Did I ever tell you how they adopted me?" Tommy questioned suddenly.   
  
"No." Jason replied. "Come on, let's go sit down."  
  
Tommy nodded and let Jason pull him over to a park bench. For a moment Jason was going to put his arm around Tommy's shoulders and pull him close but, since someone might walk by though is wasn't likely anyone would, he settled for keeping a hold of his hand. Tommy managed a shaky smile for him before he began.   
  
"Unlike most people trying to adopt my parents had the choice between three babies. Two mothers had selected them as their parents of choice. There was David and I from my biological mother and another baby. David and I were born first, at a hospital near where they lived. They were told, by their caseworker, that there were two babies at the hospital who were eligible for adoption. I was in an incubator, because I was so small and had a very bad case of jaundice, so they came to see me before going to the regular viewing section of the maternity ward. When they were just coming up to the window, the caseworker got another call."  
  
"The other baby had just been born. He was healthy, normal weight and size, and the mother was saying how much she looked like my mom. They had every reason to turn around and find the adoption papers for that baby." Tommy swallowed. "But by that time my mom had gotten to the window and had spotted me. I was an ugly baby. I really was one of those truly ugly babies. I was completely bald, my skin was an ugly, unhealthy shade of yellow from the jaundice I had, my head was pinched because they had had to use forceps to remove me from the womb and I was too small. You should see the baby pictures they have. But that didn't matter to my mom. My dad says she just looked at me and he knew it was already a done deal for her. She told the case worker that I was her baby and that as soon as she could she was taking me home."  
  
"Then they both spent an hour doing paper work in the waiting room so that my mom could watch the nurse stick the name Thomas Oliver on the tag. They took me home a week later." Tommy shook his head. "I still don't understand why they picked me but I am so grateful and glad they did. I love them so much. I really don't know what I'd do if they suddenly didn't want me anymore."  
  
Jason sighed and, after taking a quick glance around, put his arms around his boyfriend. He really was not sure that, if it came down to it, Tommy would choose him over his parents but he did not think that the Olivers would force their son into that choice. They wanted him to be happy just as much as Tommy wanted to make them proud of him and, unlike his own father; the Olivers had always seemed to be very accepting people. Jason wasn't sure, but he had thought he'd heard Tommy talk about his second cousin Bruce and his boyfriend Fred before as well.  
  
Tommy leaned into Jason's embrace for a few moments before remembering where they were and reluctantly pulling away. "I don't know how long I'll be able to keep us a secret from them. They know me too well not to notice something is up. Keeping Ranger business a secret is bad enough but I do it because telling them could put them in danger. I want them to know about this. I want them to accept us."  
  
"Whenever you're ready to let the cat out of the bag is fine with me." Jason assured him. "I honestly don't think you're mom and dad are going to make a big deal out of this. From what I can tell they aren't like that."  
  
"I know but...but I can't know for sure." Tommy mumbled.  
  
"No, you can't, at least, not until you---we tell them." Jason agreed. "And we can tell them whenever you are ready to. I will be willing whenever you want to."  
  
Tommy was silent for a moment as he thought. "My dad is on a business trip until next Tuesday. Maybe on Wednesday we could have dinner together at my house and tell them then." Tommy glanced up to see what Jason thought and saw the surprised look on his face. It had taken him more than a year to work up the courage to tell his parents and Tommy wanted to do it within a week! "I know it's soon but I know it's going to drive me crazy if they don't know. I need to know they accept us as soon as I can, Jase. I don't know if I can explain why it's so important to me but..."   
  
"It's okay." Jason said after Tommy trailed off helplessly. "It's obviously very important to you and that's all I need to know."  
  
Jason was not going to mention the fact he was forming his own conclusions as to why it was so important to Tommy to gain his parents' acceptance, not just for their relationship but in most aspects of his life. Tommy did not fully realize it but for most of his life he had been trying to prove to himself and his parents that they had not made the wrong choice when they had chosen him to be their son.   
  
Jason sighed, until they had his parents' acceptance Jason could not really do anything to comfort Tommy. He settled for drawing him close again and, sure that no one was around, kissing him tenderly. The action surprised Tommy but after a moment he responded, letting Jason gently engage his tongue in a slow dance. The kiss was ended abruptly when they heard approaching footsteps.   
  
Two middle aged women came around a bend in the path a few seconds after they jumped apart. They were both chattering away but paused in their conversation long enough to say a passing hello to the two boys. After the two women had passed, Tommy and Jason exchanged sheepish smiles.   
  
"That was close." Tommy commented. "Maybe we should get out of here."  
  
"Yeah," Jason agreed though he was not really thrilled about it. Where else could they go to be alone together? Everywhere they went they risked someone catching them kissing or holding hands.  
  
Jason walked Tommy home even though it was out of his way. Tommy made no comment on it. He knew that the former Gold Ranger spent as much time out of the house as he could. Not being able to reach out and take Jason's hand or put an arm around those broad shoulders was an annoyance, but Tommy knew that if he did so the two of them would be part of the neighbourhood gossip by morning.   
  
Jason stopped at the end of the driveway and, at Tommy's confused look, said, "If I walk you to the door I doubt I'll be able to stop myself from kissing you."  
  
"Oh." Tommy flushed slightly, feeling ridiculously pleased. He glanced around and then smiled. "Come on, I've got a...um...a cd for you in my car."  
  
Jason grinned, seeing the tinted windows of the car that was parked in the driveway. "Okay."  
  
They both got in the front, knowing that, unless someone really looked, they would not be seen. Tommy was parked right in front of the garage. Normally he parked at the curb but his father's car was in the shop for while he was away so he got a spot in the driveway for a couple days.   
  
Tommy barely got the door shut before Jason's hands were in his hair and his lips were being taken in a passionate kiss. Tommy wrapped his arms around Jason's waist, pulling him closer as the kiss deepened. He moaned softly, letting Jason's tongue slip into his mouth. The wet invader caressed his mouth, engaging his tongue in a heated duel.   
  
Tommy was dizzy by the time Jason's lips left his. He felt a hand caress his cheek before realizing his eyes were still closed. He opened them to see Jason's midnight orbs sparkling with amusement. Chuckling softly, the former Gold Ranger leaned in for another brief kiss.   
  
"I should probably get going. Your mom might start to wonder what we're doing in here." Jason commented, a touch of regret colouring his voice.  
  
"Yeah," Tommy sighed, shaking his head to clear it. 'Damn Jason and his mouth!'  
  
Jason smothered a laugh. "Should I actually take a cd?"  
  
"Uh...I guess." Tommy replied grabbing the first one he could find.  
  
"Hey! This is mine!" Jason told him as he looked at the cover. "I've been looking for this for weeks. I was ready to go and buy a new copy."  
  
Tommy grinned, completely unrepentant. "Oops."  
  
Jason mock scowled. "I am going to have to get you for this, Oliver."  
  
"Sure." Tommy laughed and then, on impulse, swooped in for another short kiss, taking Jason by surprise.  
  
Jason laughed and grabbed Tommy in a tight hug for a few moments. "I feel like such a sap saying this but, call me later?"  
  
"I will, for sure." Tommy told him.   
  
They both reluctantly exited the car and Jason immediately headed back down the driveway. He knew if he stayed any longer he would want to kiss Tommy again. He paused when he reached the sidewalk and watched Tommy disappear inside his house. Sighing, he slowly turned and started home.   
  
The next week was a bit difficult. It was hard for Jason and Tommy to keep their relationship a secret. They could not spend that much time alone together, especially since the Rangers always seemed to be hanging out in a group together. Divatox also seemed to be plotting against them. Every time they managed to get a few moments for themselves she would send something to disturb them! If that was not bad enough for the two boys trying to nurture their fledging relationship, Tommy was a nervous wreck by Wednesday night.   
  
Tommy could not stop fidgeting while they ate dinner with his parents. Jason was tempted to lean over and kiss him hard, not only to reassure him but also because doing so always seemed to stun Tommy enough to get him to stop moving. Sarah and Thomas Oliver also noticed something was disturbing their son and, halfway through the meal, Sarah could not stand it any longer.   
  
"Tommy, what's wrong?" Sarah asked, putting down her fork. "I can hear your foot thumping under the table and you can't sit still so don't say nothing."  
  
"Nothing is wrong I just..." Tommy glanced at Jason quickly; needing the smile of support he was offered. "There's something I need to tell you."  
  
Sarah had caught the glance her son shot at Jason but misinterpreted it. "You wouldn't mind giving us a moment, would you?"   
  
"No, actually, Jason is here for uh...moral support." Tommy told her. "And it kind of...involves him too."  
  
Sarah exchanged a glance with her husband whose eyebrow had risen spectacularly in a silent question. "What is it?"  
  
Tommy took a deep breath that was supposed to be steadying. When that did not work he discreetly reached for Jason's hand under the table. "Mom, Dad, I'm gay. Jason and I...We're a couple."  
  
A very pregnant pause followed. Tommy's grip on Jason's hand increased to the point where he thought he was going to lose feeling in the appendage. After a moment of silence, Jason began to feel dread gather in the pit of his stomach. Maybe he had been wrong. Maybe Sarah and Thomas Oliver were not as accepting as he had thought. Maybe they were going to react the same way his father had.  
  
"How long has this been going on?" Sarah finally asked in a tone that gave nothing away.  
  
"We've been dating for a little over a week now but...uh...I've had...well, I've had feelings for Jason for a long time." Tommy mumbled.  
  
"And you," Sarah turned her attention to Jason, "you feel the same way about my son."  
  
"Yes, ma'am, I do." Jason replied, his voice unwavering.   
  
"If you hurt my son you'll answer to me, understand?" Sarah told him firmly.  
  
At that warning, Tommy's face broke into a relieved grin. His mother had said the same thing to Katherine when they first started dating. He had nearly laughed out loud when she had told him. He knew his mother was protective of him but really! Now, he was very much glad to hear the slightly intimidating threat.   
  
"I understand. I don't plan on ever hurting Tommy, not if I can help it." Jason told her.  
  
Sarah nodded once to him before turning her attention back to Tommy. "Was that it, sweetie?"  
  
Jason jaw just about hit the table. That was it?! They reacted as though Tommy made this sort of announcement every day! He simply could not believe it.   
  
"Yes, mom." Tommy replied, grinning happily. "Thanks."  
  
"Thanks? There's no need for thanks, boy." Thomas told him. "I'll admit it is a bit of a shock to hear you've taken up with someone we thought you were simply friends with, especially since you and Kat seemed to be getting along quite well. But bringing your boyfriend home for dinner isn't really all that different from bringing your girlfriend home, why should we treat it as such?"  
  
"I know or I should have known at least." Tommy blushed sheepishly. "I just...It's not always like that, you know?"  
  
"You are, unfortunately right, though I've never been able to see why some people react badly." Thomas agreed. He was not about to tell his son, because he did not want to embarrass the boy by discussing his sex life, but he considered himself to be bisexual and had had male lovers in his youth. He was, however, deeply in love with his wife and would, under no circumstances, cheat on her with anyone, male or female.  
  
"By the way, what happen to Kat?" Sarah questioned. She was fond of the Australian girl and could not help but wonder how she had reacted to this.  
  
"She and Kim actually kind of set us up." Tommy admitted, flushing a deeper shade of red. "And I talked to her about everything afterwards. We're still friends."  
  
"That's good." Sarah commented. "She's a lovely girl; I wouldn't want you to hurt her. Pass the salt, please."  
  
Jason was still sitting there nearly gaping in shock. He simply could not believe that it could be this easy. He realized, vaguely, that he had to look a bit odd, and thought for a moment Sarah Oliver was trying not to laugh at his expression, but he was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.  
  
"Hey," Tommy whispered quietly, leaning over slightly so only he could hear. "Are you okay?"  
  
Jason smiled in reassurance, quickly gathering his scattered wits, "I'm fine, just a bit surprised. I didn't think it would be this easy."  
  
The elder Thomas huffed slightly. It was not long before he launched into a long winded lecture about society and how, though it gave the appearance of growing acceptance to appease the activists, it was really promoting ignorance by letting words like gay and especially fag be used so negatively by youth, which made it even harder for homosexuals to feel comfortable...Thomas could have very easily gone on for hours had Sarah not reminded them, after they had cleared the dishes, that he was taking her out to a movie. They left shortly after leaving the two boys alone for a few hours.  
  
Tommy and Jason made good use of the time they had alone together. They ended up on the couch in Tommy's basement. The movie they put in was turned off after about thirty minutes when they decided cuddling and kissing was more fun than watching Indiana Jones search for the lost ark.   
  
It was not too long before Jason had to draw back from one especially fiery kiss for a few moments. He was getting pretty damn horny and, so far, Tommy had not expressed an interest to go beyond heated kissing. Ever since he had come home he had spent more time with his hands down his pants than normal and, if things kept going the way they were, it looked as though once he left tonight it would be no exception. He was already sure the other boy could feel his erection through his jeans.   
  
Tommy was not about to let Jason stop their kissing session. It was hard for them to get time like this together. So far, whenever they tried to go out anywhere one or more of the other Rangers found out and wanted to tag along. They usually did things as a group, so it would have been strange to suddenly not let them come along to a movie or the beach.   
  
So it made sense for them to make to most of their time. With that thought in mind, Tommy barely paused to draw in a breath before latching on to Jason's panting mouth again. It felt so good to wrap his tongue around Jason's as the other boy's hands tangled in his hair. Jason, however, did not seem as enthusiastic as normal and he was about to ask what was wrong when he felt an impressive bulge against his leg. Jason's blush and sheepish smile confirmed what he thought; Jason was feeling as horny as he was.   
  
"Sorry," Jason mumbled, a bit embarrassed, "but I think we better lay off for awhile."  
  
"What if I don't want to?" Tommy asked suddenly. He was surprised when the words came out of his mouth, but doing this, going further, felt right.  
  
"Well..." Jason searched the chocolate eyes earnestly. "We could try some...things but only if you feel comfortable to. We can stop now, or at any time, if you want."  
  
"I don't want to stop." Tommy murmured. "I want to..." He did not finish the sentence, instead crushing his lips against Jason's in another heated kiss.  
  
Jason felt a rush of excitement shoot straight down to his groin at Tommy's enthusiastic move. He was thrilled but at the same time cautious. The last thing he wanted to do was make Tommy feel uncomfortable by doing something he was not ready for.   
  
Tommy felt butterflies start to flap crazily in his stomach as Jason pulled his shirt over his head, all the while running his hands over his body, but he mirrored the move and hugged Jason close, relishing the feel of the skin to skin contact. He had been shirtless around Jason before, hell they'd been naked around each other before, but he had never been able to reach out and touch. By the time they lost their jeans Tommy was incredibly tense, partly from excitement and partly from nervousness.   
  
Jason gently eased Tommy onto his back and just lay beside him, propped up on one elbow, waiting for Tommy to calm down. Tommy blushed in embarrassment. He wanted this, he really did, but he could not seem to convince his pounding heart that he was not about to jump off a cliff. He didn't know, maybe he was.  
  
"Relax, Tommy." Jason murmured, gently stroking the solid chest. "Just relax and let me make you feel good."  
  
"O...okay." Tommy silently berated himself for letting his nervousness show.  
  
"Do you want me to stop?" Jason asked seriously.  
  
"No." Tommy reached up and pulled Jason down for a long kiss. "Don't stop."  
  
Jason smiled softly to himself. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing, just relax."  
  
Tommy tried and found, as Jason began kissing and licking his way down his throat, that it was not going to be that hard to relax. He sighed and closed his eyes as Jason's hands and tongue and lips began caressing his body. They were both still in their boxers but Tommy was not sure how long they'd stay that way. He could feel Jason's erection against his leg and knew his own cock was achingly hard.   
  
Jason enjoyed the feeling of Tommy's warm skin under his hands and adored the sound of the soft sighs and gasps as he explored Tommy's body. He knew which areas of the body were usually 'hot spots', but finding out which ones affected Tommy the most would be fun. He slowly circled Tommy's nipple with his tongue, hearing the surprised gasp that turned into a low moan.   
  
"Oh man..." Tommy groaned, surprised to feel tiny electric jolts run through his body at the stimulation.  
  
Jason just smirked and, after lavishing his attention on the brown nubs for a few moments, continued to travel down Tommy's body. He was startled and slightly amused to find that Tommy's belly button was very sensitive and that dipping his tongue into it made Tommy moan in pleasure. Jason smiled at the sound. He loved being able to make Tommy feel this good.   
  
Jason's thumbs hooked on Tommy's boxers and he looked up for conformation. Tommy managed a brief nod before the material landed on the floor with the rest of their scattered clothing. He shivered, now completely naked under Jason, as a large hand reached down to fondle his balls. At the same time Jason mouth covered his again, kissing him deeply. The gentleness of Jason's kiss contrasting with the motions of his hands which felt, to Tommy, like they were touching him everywhere except his engorged cock.   
  
"Jase!" Tommy rasped as his mouth was released.   
  
Jason smiled, taking a moment to look at his lover. Tommy's eyes had fluttered shut soon after his boxers were lost, his face was flushed and his mouth was open as he panted. He closed a lose fist around Tommy's hard cock and pumped gently. Tommy gasped and his legs instinctively fell open as if to invite more of that touch. Jason grinned and pumped Tommy's cock a few more times before lowering his mouth the very tip of the organ.  
  
Tommy's eyes snapped open when he felt Jason's tongue run from the tip of his cock down to the base. He jerked up slightly, unsure for a moment, but before Jason could stop the stimulation he lay back down on the couch and reached out unsteady hands to caress the dark locks of his lover's hair. Jason smiled reassuringly at him for a moment before continuing his maddening ministrations, licking and nibbling all over Tommy's shaft.  
  
Tommy moaned deeply as Jason opened his mouth, sucking his cockhead into his wet, warm mouth. His tongue danced around the organ he held in his mouth but he abandoned the action soon to slowly draw as much of his of his new lover's cock as he could deep into his mouth. Tommy could not help himself, he began to thrust his hips in Jason's mouth, moaning as Jason's tongue began licking broadly around his shaft.  
  
Jason held Tommy's trembling hips, keeping him from thrusting too far down his throat. He would have to get used Tommy's cock before he could deep throat him, Tommy's cock was longer than Darrius' had been and he did not want to end up gagging. It was easier when he was more in control of how much cock he was taking into his mouth but, since it was his first time getting a blow job, Jason could not really blame Tommy for thrusting so frantically. Besides, he knew it would not be long before Tommy came.   
  
Tommy could feel his body tensing as his orgasm approached. Jason's wet orifice surrounding his throbbing cock and that tongue licking in all the right places was just too much. Fire spread through his veins as his hips snapped forward once more and he nearly screamed as his seed filled Jason's eager mouth.   
  
Jason continued sucking softly at Tommy's quivering shaft, swallowing all he had to give, until the lean body relaxed completely. He slid back up the couch so he could draw his very sated boyfriend into his arms. Grinning widely at the relaxed features, he brushed a few strands of hair off of Tommy's flushed face. The chocolate eyes opened and Tommy smiled softly before reaching up and drawing Jason in a slow kiss. Tommy could taste a little of himself in Jason's warm mouth as their tongues danced and they kissed long and slow and deep.  
  
Tommy sighed and shifted so he was pressed closer to Jason when they parted. Jason chuckled slightly at how relaxed Tommy was. "I take it you liked that?"  
  
"Mmm hmm." Tommy replied, happy to resume their cuddling. He would have done just that had he not become aware of Jason's still rock hard cock pressing against him. He tugged at Jason's boxers, which were shed quickly and glanced down at the organ, now oozing precome slowly. "You've got to be hurting with that thing."  
  
"Uh...Just a bit." Jason admitted. "I can always take care of...oh!"  
  
Tommy's fingers hesitantly stroked the large organ making Jason gasp. "I'm not to sure about giving you a blow job, yet, but um..."  
  
"S'okay, Tommy," Jason managed around a groan as Tommy's fingers caressed his balls. "Wouldn't expect you...Mmm...to the first time...anyway...Oh...Jeez..."  
  
Tommy reached out somewhat unsurely to grasp Jason's straining manhood. Jason moaned helplessly and thrust into Tommy's loose fist. He had, for so long, fantasized about this happening. The real thing was almost too much. He had already nearly creamed himself when blowing Tommy. Just the feel of his long fingers wrapping around his cock was almost enough to make him lose it.  
  
Still stroking Jason's cock, Tommy leaned down and kissed his lover, letting his mouth be plundered with Jason's skilled tongue as he jerked the larger boy off. When Jason broke away, panting for air, Tommy began to trail kisses down his throat.   
  
"I'm going to come!" Jason exclaimed as his body stiffened and he came all over his chest and Tommy's hand.  
  
Tommy kissed Jason quickly before reaching for his boxers and wiping up Jason's cum before it managed to get onto the couch. Tossing them aside again, he curled up on his side, snuggling close to his new lover, and sighing as contentment as he felt Jason shift so he could lay an arm across Tommy's waist. Tommy repeated the action, slightly thrilled at the languid, satisfied movements and the warm glow in the midnight eyes.  
  
"Mmm." Jason murmured after a few moments. "That was good."   
  
Tommy smirked smugly. He knew he had not done anything that special, but knowing Jason had liked it was a major ego boaster. Jason caught the look and smiled, kissing Tommy playfully. "Of course, there is always room for improvement."  
  
"And I suppose you'll be teaching me how to improve." Tommy commented, absently realizing his hand was gliding over Jason's board back.  
  
"I might be. Of course, the lessons will be very hands on." Jason retorted.  
  
"That's alright," Tommy reached down to lightly pinch Jason's butt, getting a surprised yelp from him. "I've always been a hands on kinda guy." 


	4. Caught

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.  
  
Author's note: This is a short one but there will be more coming soon I promise! After this there is a NC-17 chapter. If you want it e-mail me at girl_in_the_red_jacket@hotmail.com  
  
Chapter 3  
Caught  
  
Life for the Rangers, in the following months, was pretty good. Divatox was still testing the waters so the monster attacks were not as challenging as they were used to. Rocky was recovering well from his back injury, though he had almost had a set back when Kim jumped him because he, with a big of nudging from certain parties, screwed up the courage to ask her out. Kim had reluctantly gone back to Florida, promising to come back home as soon as the Pan Globals were over.   
  
However, it was always difficult to have a relationship with a civilian while acting as a Ranger. At least it was a bit easy for Tommy because he did not have to make absurd excuses when his communicator went off and Jason often went to the Power Chamber to help out during the battles anyway. Neither of them liked it when they were interrupted but at least Jason understood. Keeping their relationship from their friends was harder than being a Ranger dating a civilian.  
  
It was a relief to have Tommy's house to go to when they wanted to be alone. It was not unusual for Jason to end up staying for dinner at the Oliver household. Sarah and Thomas had all but already accepted him as a member of the family, especially since Tommy told his mother, without going into too much detail, that Jason was not really speaking with his father. Sarah Oliver had a touch cookie exterior but she could be the biggest mother hen you could ever come across when she wanted to be. They never disturbed the two boys when they retreated to the Olivers' basement together. They trusted both their son and his boyfriend to be responsible and knew it was not easier for either boy to hide their relationship like they felt they had to.   
  
Plus Thomas had chucked a box of condoms to his son and a tube of WET one day when Jason was over, causing both boys to turn interesting shades of red. He had always maintained that the easiest way to prevent kids from having sex was to have their parents embarrass the hell out of them before they could do anything. Thomas had managed to come up with some odd theories in his lifetime, that one not being the strangest yet and would probably not be one of the stranger ones to come. Sarah had scolded him properly for the stunt but it was hard to take her seriously when she was biting back a smile.   
  
The two boys had not been intimate in that way yet. They had come to know each others bodies quite well, though they were still exploring each other and enjoying the process of finding their sexual hot spots a lot. Tommy had quickly learned what drove Jason crazy and, despite some initial misgivings about it, had found he quite liked driving him crazy by blowing him. The power trip that he got from reducing Jason, perhaps the strongest person he knew, into a quivering mass was incredible and he was quickly becoming a very talented cocksucker.  
  
Unfortunately, communicators were prone to go off and sometimes when they did they left Tommy with a bit of a problem he had to wait to solve. After battles they had a debriefing and after that they had to evaluate what had to be down to repair the Zords. And if Tommy was particularly horny it felt, to him, like an eternity to wait.  
  
"Calm down, Tom. It won't take us that long. You guys managed to keep the Zords from getting too damaged." Jason told him as the made there way to the hangers where the Zords were held.  
  
"Why did we have to draw Zord repair duty for today?" Tommy muttered sourly. "They don't really need any repairs; I don't see why we have to spend another hour checking them over. We'll be done before then."  
  
A slow smile spread across Jason's face as Tommy continued to mumble. He had an idea of how to stop his complaints. He grabbed one of Tommy's shoulders and pulled just hard enough to turn him around. Before the startled boy could say anything a pair of lips pressed firmly against his and Jason's tongue snaked inside his mouth for a few moments before withdrawing.  
  
"What was that about?" Tommy murmured a little dazed.  
  
Jason smirked. "You said you were horny. In case you didn't notice, there's no one here but us. Everyone went to the Youth Centre except Tanya and Adam and they were going after they shut down Alpha."  
  
"I'm not making out with you in the Power Chamber hall way!" Tommy protested.   
  
"I never said anything about the hallway, did I? Ever done it in a supply room? Billy kept them so neat that there are quite a few empty ones around, and happens to be the next door on your right." Jason informed him cheekily.  
  
"I like the way you think." Tommy said in a deceivingly soft tone.  
  
Then he pushed Jason against the wall. Jason gave a startled yelp that turned into a growling moan as Tommy kissed him hard and roughly massaged his dick through his jeans. Jason gave as good as he got, quickly recovering and kissing back as his hands fumbled for the buttons of Tommy's pants.  
  
"I thought we weren't going to make out in the hallway." Jason chuckled breathlessly when they had to part for air. His hand was down Tommy's boxers by now, slowly stroking his awakening cock.  
  
Tommy groaned in frustration and pleasure. Letting some space slip between their bodies, he grabbed Jason's hands and pulled him the short distance to the empty storage room. One hand had travelled to the back of Jason's neck as Jason kissed him hungrily.   
  
After a few minutes of Tommy not being able to find the release button for the door Jason broke away and pushed it for him. "You're really useless sometimes, you know."  
  
"You're talking too much." Tommy growled as pulled Jason's shirt over his head.  
  
"You are in some kind of mood today." Jason laughed, helping Tommy discard his jeans. He attacked Tommy's throat, nip kissing his way from his ear to his collar bone as Tommy continued to fumble with the stubborn buttons on Jason's jeans.  
  
"Off." Tommy growled slightly, unhappy to momentarily thwarted by a button for the second time that day.  
  
Jason chuckled again, Tommy was not usually this forward but hey, he was not about to complain. His lips pressed against Tommy's again as he pushed away his hands and undid the buttons himself on the very first try.  
  
Meanwhile, Tanya and Adam had finished helping Alpha set up to turn off and recharge. Once the little robot was off, Tanya decided to let her boyfriend in on the reason she had volunteered them for the job in the first place.  
  
"Jesus, Tanya! Warn a guy! We're in the middle of the Power Chamber and Jason and Tommy are still around." Adam exclaimed when Tanya basically struck up a sexy pose using one of the consoles and propositioned him.   
  
"Well..." Tanya grinned wickedly. "There is always one of the backrooms. Tommy and Jason will be busy with the Zords, they won't have time to bother us. Besides, it was kind of exciting the last time we did something like that."  
  
Adam blushed at the memory. He may have been shy but Tanya certainly was not. She had pulled him into the supply room of the library once when they had had a spare. They hadn't done much, just made out a little, but Adam had to admit knowing they were running the risk of getting caught excited him a bit.   
  
And besides that Tanya had just nipped at his ear lobe, sending a jolt through him. She had discovered that spot and knew it was the best way to get him to do whatever she wanted.   
  
"Sounds good to me." Adam said breathily.  
  
Tanya's grin grew as he pulled her lips to his, "I'm so glad you think so."  
  
They managed to stumble towards the backroom, glad that Alpha was shut off to recharge so they wouldn't have to worry about him wandering the halls. Tanya's hands were around Adams's waist as he slipped his hands under her shirt to fumble with the clasp of her bra. Their lips were fastened together making walking a bit difficult but neither really cared.   
  
When they got to the door Adam fumbled for a few moments before he managed to find the release button. It opened with a soft hiss and had either Ranger been paying attention they would have been in for a surprising site.  
  
"Oh shit!"  
  
The exclamation made them jump apart much like the couple already in the small room had.  
  
Adam looked at his two friends and laughed. "Well, it's about time!"  
  
Tanya's draw dropped as she glanced at her boyfriend. Tommy and Jason had obvious been going at it heavier than they had been. They were both in various stages of undress. Jason was down to his jeans, which were unbuttoned and Tommy was wearing nothing but his boxers and a pair of socks, which was understandable since the floors were kind of cold. She could also see they were both rather excited.  
  
Adam was still laughing but he managed to gasp out, "Rocky owes me twenty bucks!"  
  
"Rocky? Rocky noticed?" Jason had to chuckle at that. It seemed most of the team knew they would end up in a relationship.  
  
"Yep. I had twenty bucks saying you'd get together before graduation. He thought you wouldn't for a couple more years or that you'd been dating secretly for years already." Adam replied, grinning from ear to ear. "So when did you get together anyway? And when were you planning to tell us? Does anyone else know?"  
  
"You want the whole story?" Jason asked.  
  
"It only seems fair, since we had to stumble upon you guys like this to find out!" Adam smirked. "Besides, if you've been together less than a year, Rocky owes me another twenty!"  
  
Jason and Tommy exchanged amused glances at that as Tommy handed Jason his shirt before pulling on his own. They were a bit disappointed they had been interrupted but they were mostly relieved that Adam was not taking it badly. He really seemed nothing but amused. Tanya on the other hand...  
  
"Uh...Tanya?" Jason questioned after a moment of silence from the Yellow Ranger.   
  
Tanya shook her head and smiled at them. "Sorry. That just surprised me. And I want details as well...Hey! Wait just a minute! This isn't the secret Kim and Kat were talking about on the way home from Muranthias, is it?"  
  
"Probably. They played matchmaker for us just after that." Tommy told them with a slight smile as opened the door.  
  
"You got it on the first try this time!" Jason said overenthusiastically, a smirk playing around his lips. "Way to go!"  
  
"Oh shut up." Tommy mock scowled at him as they exited, pretending not to notice Adam and Tanya's confused looks. He was not going to explain what that exchange was about!  
  
Jason just smiled. "And Rocky owes you another twenty Adam." 


	5. Hurts

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize!  
  
Author's Note: Happy now Rene? I want more of that Dance story! And Dagmar, two can play at the cliffhanger game! MWAHAH!!  
  
By the way, this is a chapter that originally had SMUT in it. If you want to read the original version and/or any of the previous smut chapters, like chapter four which was all smut, please e-mail me at girl_in_the_red_jacket@hotmail.com  
  
Chapter 5  
  
Tommy absolutely hated night battles. Not only were they more exhausting than day battles, because at least for those he had gotten a few hours sleep in before hand, but tonight they had also pulled him away from a warm bed and, more importantly, Jason's warm arms. Thank god they did not happen often!  
  
Tommy yawned hugely. The quicker he got everything wrapped up the quicker he could go back home. He was pretty sure Jason had been falling back asleep when he teleported out, it was three in the morning after all, but for a moment they had both awake and alert to hear what Zordon had to say. The communicator chime did that to them.  
  
"Have the scanners located any life forms?" Zordon's booming voice shook Tommy from his pleasant day dream of what had gone on earlier in the night. He had done these types of scans so often he could do them in his sleep, literally.  
  
"Six. I can bring it up on the screen..." Tommy said unable to keep all the sleep out of his voice.  
  
A second later a cat and her litter of kittens appeared.  
  
"I don't think we're going to find anything Zordon it's kind of late for anyone to be out." Tommy remarked.  
  
"I know this as well, Tommy, but we must follow..."  
  
"I know..." Tommy's yawn cut off part of his word. " 'anger policy. I'm almost done."   
  
"I realize you are tired. It was good of you to volunteer for this." Zordon commented.   
  
"It's my job." Tommy replied and then glanced at Zordon. "And everyone else is working tomorrow. They have to get up earlier."  
  
"I had thought as much." Zordon smiled at his team's leader. He was humble about it now but when he became Red Ranger he matured a great deal and started to put his team in front of himself at every opportunity. It reminded him of his first chosen one...  
  
"By the way, how is Jason?" Zordon asked a knowing smile on his face. "I have not seen him since after Muranthias."  
  
"He's doing okay. He's having a few problems with his father right now but hopefully that will begin to work out soon." Tommy replied absently as he fiddled with the dials to adjust the reading.  
  
"Yes, his father did take his---What is the term used? ---'coming out of the closet' rather badly." Zordon commented.  
  
Tommy's head shot up at that. "You know about that?"  
  
"He stayed here for the night after he told his parents. His father's unreasonable attitude made him feel the need to escape his house for a time and, not knowing where he could go, he came here." Zordon told him.  
  
Tommy was not sure what to say. It pained him a little to know that, when he had been hurting, Jason had chosen to come to the Power Chamber instead of to his house. "Oh."  
  
Zordon chuckled, seemingly reading his thoughts, "I believe he would have liked to come to you. Only, I do not think he was ready to tell you why he needed to get away for a time."  
  
"So he told you, while he was here?" Tommy asked. He felt a little bad about going behind Jason's back to find out about this, but the other boy had made it clear the topic was not one he was ready to discuss and Tommy was not sure how to help him since he did not know the details.  
  
"Yes, although, I was the one who began the conversation. I had suspected for some time that Jason was homosexual or bisexual and when I asked him what was bothering him his response led me to believe he had told his father. The conversation we had, and it was a rather long one, stemmed from there." Zordon answered.  
  
"Why would you suspect he was gay?" Tommy asked, confused. He had not been able to tell and he was Jason's best friend before they became lovers!  
  
"When I asked him how he had enjoyed the Peace Conference he spoke of a 'friend' named Darrius." Zordon chuckled. "You do not have the same look on your face when you talk about a friend as when you talk about a former lover. Jason had the wistful look of remembered passion on his face when he spoke of that young man. I began to suspect then."  
  
"Oh." Tommy's voice was a little strangled. Knowing his love talked about his ex-boyfriend with 'the wistful look of remember passion' displayed nakedly on his face was a bit unsettling.   
  
"I do believe you and Jason have since begun a relationship." Zordon commented shrewdly, hearing the discomfort in his young warrior's voice. 'It is hard to know those we love have loved others before us.'  
  
"He told you that too!" Tommy exclaimed, shocked and a little angry. They had not agreed to tell Zordon that! Of course, they had not actually discussed it but Tommy had not wanted his mentor to know, mostly because he was not sure how Zordon would react.   
  
"No. How could he? I have not seen him since you have decided to have a relationship, unless you made that decision before Muranthias." Zordon replied. "I sensed an attraction between the two of you from the start, though I only recently began to think you would end up lovers. I have long believed it was only a matter of time before you realized what type of bond connected you. In the last weeks you have been happier and more at peace with yourself than I have ever seen you. I strongly believed that difference in you was because you had found the mate of your soul."  
  
Tommy blushed furiously at that. He had yet to tell Jason he loved him. Jason had whispered the words in a breathless rush a few weeks ago during their first time making love. The breathless confession had come while Tommy was buried inside his lover's body, just moments before Tommy had come.   
  
"You really think we're soul mates?" Tommy found himself asking. He also found that he wanted, with all his heart, for the answer to be yes.   
  
Zordon smiled at his Ranger, "Yes, Tommy. I can sense that you and Jason are connected in ways you will never fully understand."  
  
Tommy was silent. He just did not know what to say to that.   
  
"I believe the scans are finished, Tommy." Zordon said gently, snapping Tommy out of his whirl wind thoughts.   
  
"Oh yeah." Tommy mumbled. He looked up at his mentor and searched for the right words. In the end he settled on, "Thank you, Zordon." Just before he teleported back home.  
  
Zordon chuckled, glad his two protégés had found each other at last. To the empty room he murmured. "You are most welcome, Tommy. Take care of him as I know he will take care of you."  
  
Tommy teleported into his bedroom to find Jason fast asleep, a book resting in the limp hands on his chest. He smiled slightly. His lover had tried to wait up for him after all!   
  
Tommy gently removed the object, carefully tucked a bookmark in to keep Jason's page, and slipped into bed beside his lover. Jason reacted almost immediately to his presence, even in his sleep, by turning slightly so he could slid and arm around Tommy's waist and cuddle close to him. The action brought a smile to Tommy's face and he sighed, settling down and falling quickly into a deep sleep.  
  
He awoke the next morning when the sun crept across his pillow to shine right in his eyes. He tried to ignore it for as long as he could, even when he realized Jason was no longer in bed with him. Groaning when he found he was not going to be able to get back to sleep and, mumbling to himself about getting new curtains, got out of bed.  
  
He ambled to the bathroom, noting absently that both his parents had already left for work. What time was it anyway? Good thing it was a Saturday.   
  
Tommy was about to open the bathroom door when he heard a soft sound. Listening for a moment he realized, to his surprise and amusement, that Jason was singing in the shower. If an off-key version of some song he had never heard before could be heard through the door he wondered what it would sound like inside the bathroom or, better yet, in the shower.  
  
That in mind, Tommy opened the door quietly, trying not to let Jason know he was there. It worked, and his lover continued to belt out the tune. Suppressing his chuckles, Tommy quickly stripped his boxers, tossing them on top of Jason's. Then, with a wicked smile on his face, threw open the shower curtain.   
  
Jason let out something between a squawk and a yelp as the shower curtain was suddenly pulled back. He turned to face whoever was in there with him too quickly and ended up slipping. Tommy grabbed him before he could fall, laughing out loud at the sight of Jason, the man infamous for his steady, calm demeanour, with his hair all soapy and messed, suds streaming down his body as the water hit him, as he was pulled half into the tub to make sure Jason got to the bottom of the bath without bashing his head on the side.   
  
"Tommy!" Jason exclaimed. "What the hell are you doing?!"   
  
"I didn't know you sing in the shower!" Tommy chuckled, helping Jason to his feet again.   
  
"Yeah, well, it's not like I advertise that fact." Jason grumbled. "Don't do that again! Shit! I nearly smashed my head on the wall. Ranger reflexes aren't something that goes away quickly you know!"  
  
"No but it sure looks like grace does!" Tommy teased.   
  
Jason responded by pulling him completely into the shower and, stepping out of the spray himself, flicked the water to cold. It was Tommy turn to let out a surprised squawk as the water turned icy on him.  
  
"Jason!" Tommy sputtered, reaching out to turn the heat back on. "That wasn't funny!"  
  
Jason laughed. "Yes it was! It was about as funny as your surprising me was."  
  
"Yeah, yeah." Tommy grumbled. "Turnabouts fair play. I don't have to like it though."  
  
"Hey, I think I got the worse end of the bargain so don't complain." Jason smiled, leaning in to kiss his still mock-pouting lover. "I'm surprised you're up this early."   
  
"That makes two of us." Tommy grumbled. "I need new curtains."  
  
Jason chuckled. "Nah. Just a better day job."  
  
"I know." Tommy sighed. He looked away, growing pensive for a moment.  
  
"Hey." Jason turned the now shuttered face toward him. "What's the matter?"  
  
"Nothing really." Tommy tried to reply. Jason just gave him a look. "Okay, I just think we might be replaced soon."  
  
"As Rangers? Why?" Jason questioned. He absently picked up the soap and started washing Tommy's back, more because the gesture was soothing than anything else. Anything that had to do with losing a set of Ranger powers upset Tommy greatly.  
  
"Zordon's been talking about it. He said we were going to have to move on soon." Tommy sighed. "I guess he's right. When we get jobs it will be kind of hard to make excuses to leave all of a sudden. But...I just never thought this would end. I mean, I knew I couldn't be a power ranger forever but I never thought about it, you know?"  
  
"Yeah, I know." Jason replied. "I felt the same when I gave up my powers to go to Switzerland. It's hard but sometimes the right reasons come up and you just have to let go."  
  
"It's going to be hard." Tommy admitted.   
  
Jason smiled and leaned close to whisper seductively in Tommy's ear. "Don't worry, I'll find ways to distract you."  
  
Tommy shivered pleasantly. "Promise?"  
  
"Oh yeah." Jason's voice turned low and husky.  
  
"Mmm..." Tommy nearly purred as Jason began nibbling on his neck.   
  
Tommy pulled away slightly so he could kiss Jason. His arms slipped around Jason's back, pulling him close so their wet bodies were rubbing together. Jason moaned into his mouth at the action. The kiss started out slow but quickly grew more passionate as hands began to roam.   
  
Jason pulled out of the kiss first, his eyes burning as he gazed at Tommy for a moment then ever so slowly started down his body. Tommy moved back a step so he could lean against the cold tile as Jason set to work.   
  
He was lavishing attention on Tommy's nipples when the most annoying sound in the world went off. At that moment Jason wished there was a snooze button or something on their communicators.   
  
"Fuck." Tommy muttered. He and Jason reluctantly, but quickly, separated.  
  
"Put a towel on at least." Jason reminded Tommy of his nakedness just before he was about to teleport.   
  
"Oh. Right." Tommy quickly wrapped a towel around his waist before morphing and teleporting to the Power Chamber. Normally he wouldn't bother morphing yet but there was no reason for him to appear half naked and obviously aroused in front of his friends. That was just inviting teasing.   
  
He arrived to the surprise of Alpha and Zordon and the amusement of Rocky and Adam, who had been hanging around after Adam made use of the Power Chamber's stimulator, just to see if he would fall for their little prank. There amusement grew into downright hysterical laughter when they found out they had managed to get him while in the shower. He was pretty sure even Zordon and Alpha were trying not to laugh at him once he flat out refused to demorph. He was pretty sure he'd lost the towel during his morph.   
  
'Why do we have to make those stupid hand actions anyway?' Tommy wondered sourly as he teleported back into his bathroom. His mood did not get any better when he realized Jason had finished his shower while he was gone.   
  
"Fuck." Tommy muttered, picking up his fallen towel and heading back towards his bedroom. He was still damn horny and not to happy he and Jason had been interrupted. If it had been anyone but him it would have been a hilarious prank but come on!  
  
Walking into his room and finding Jason still butt naked lightened his mood considerably. For a moment all he could do was stare. Even though they were now dating he did not get the opportunity to study that gorgeous backside very often. It was even better when he turned around and Tommy got another great view.   
  
"That was fast." Jason commented, not at all ashamed of his bareness. He was just about to get dressed when Tommy arrived.   
  
Tommy scowled even as his eyes racked over Jason's impressive body. "It was Rocky and Adam not Zordon."  
  
Jason had too stifle his laughter. "Really? Don't worry man, Trini use to get Billy with that trick all the time. That's why I always ask what's up before teleporting out. Now, are you going to just stand there ogling me or what?"  
  
"I should just let you stand there, you know." Tommy muttered even as he walked toward his lover. He knew his own anatomy was showing just as much life as Jason's was.  
  
Jason grinned. "Yeah but what fun would that be?"  
  
"Not as much as mmm..." Tommy was cut off as Jason kissed him, hard.  
  
Much later they lay together in the aftermath of their climaxes, kissing gently Jason laughed at Tommy's smug, sated expression when they parted.   
  
"Happy, are you?" Jason chuckled.  
  
Tommy grinned. "Uh huh."  
  
Jason smiled back at him. He wished they could stay like this, cuddled together, and was loath to move but... "Your mom left you a note this morning. She'll be home at 12:30."  
  
Tommy frowned. "What time is it?"  
  
"12."   
  
"Aw, man." Tommy groaned.   
  
"And I'm thinking another shower is kind of in order so..." Jason shrugged apologetically.   
  
"Fuck." Tommy sighed. "Next time you stay over we're getting up early so we'll have the whole morning to ourselves."  
  
"Sounds good to me! But for now..." Jason jumped out of bed and delivered a smack to Tommy's bare butt, startling an outrage yelp out of his lover. "Care to join me in the shower?"  
  
"Jason!" Tommy grumbled, chasing after him as Jason scrambled out of the room. "That wasn't funny!"  
  
For nearly a month everything was great, well, as great as it could be when evil beings from outer space routinely attacked you. Tommy did not have anything to worry about, not really. His parents knew and accepted his relationship with Jason. His mother even went as far as saying he made a good choice in him! Their friends were supportive and, even if they were not ready to be overtly affectionate with one another in public, it was nice not to have to hide his newfound happiness from the people he loved most.   
  
Jason, on the other hand, was growing increasingly distressed about his situation at home. The support and acceptance he found in all his other loved ones was heartening but it just hurt so badly to live in the same house as his father and at the same time be a million miles away. Except for a few curt comments the man had not spoken to him. Tommy thought that if Jason was patient his dad would come around but Jason wasn't too sure.  
  
For the rest of his life he would hate that he had been right.  
  
It was around 6:30 on a simply gorgeous day when Sarah Oliver answered her front door. She had been busy making dinner...Okay, she had been about to order dinner from a nearby Thai restaurant but welcomed the distraction. Maybe while she was seeing who it was Thomas would come home and then he could barbeque instead of her ordering out...again.   
  
It was not a surprise to find her son's boyfriend on her doorstep, though it was surprise he would bother to ring the bell. He knew he had an open invitation into their home. He had had that even before he had started dating her son. But Jason was polite and when he wasn't with Tommy when he entered the house he usually made his presence known before coming in so...  
  
"Is Tommy here?" Jason asked softly, not looking up.  
  
"He rushed out about an hour ago." Sarah replied, studying him carefully. Something was definitely amiss. She had always been very fond of Jason for many reasons other than the fact he made her son happy. Seeing the normally cheerful, polite young man this miserable did not bode well.   
  
"Come inside, Jason. I'm sure he'll be home soon." Sarah invited. "You know you're always welcome here, whether Tommy's home or not."  
  
Sarah had not intended those words to mean something, though if anything they were meant to be comforting. So it was surprising to her that Jason would shudder and avert his face even more. Something was very wrong here.  
  
"Jason? What is it? What's wrong?" Sarah asked. She gently lifted his face so she could look in his eyes and gasped. He turned away quickly but the ugly black eye that discoloured his face shocked her completely.  
  
"What happened to you?" Sarah exclaimed even as she was pulling him into a hug. Jason stiffened slightly as he chocked back a sob. He quickly backed out of the embrace, unwilling to let himself lose control.  
  
"Mom? Jase? What's going on?" Tommy's confused voice asked.  
  
Sarah looked over Jason's shoulder at her son, who had appeared seemingly out of nowhere. She did not miss that Jason did not turn around and greet him as he normally would. "I think you'd better ask Jason."  
  
Tommy's gaze flickered to his lover's back as confusion and concern seeped into his eyes. He slipped an arm around his lover's waist and pressed a kiss to the back of his neck. He purposely ignored the fact Jason did not even turn around and, when he spotted he reason why Jason was hiding his face, he stifled his own questions. He could feel the tension in Jason's body and knew forcing him to talk would not be the best course of action.  
  
"Let's go inside." Tommy suggested as he ushered Jason into the house.  
  
Jason made no protest as Tommy lead him into kitchen. His mother followed closely behind him, handing Jason an ice pack wordlessly as Tommy inspected the bruise himself. Jason reached for Tommy's hand and held it tightly, desperate for the contact with his boyfriend. It made it a little more difficult for Tommy to check over his black eye but neither man really cared.   
  
"Keep that on. You don't want it to swell." Sarah instructed, gently pushing the ice pack back onto Jason's face.   
  
"Thanks." Jason mumbled quietly.   
  
Tommy sighed and pulled a chair close to where Jason sat, studying the table with a great intensity. "What happened, Jase? How'd you get a black eye?"  
  
Jason sighed and dipped his head down, rubbing his forehead as if trying to relieve a headache. He opened his mouth to speak and then snapped it shut again.  
  
Tommy's eyes softened even further in concern. "Jase, it's me. It's just me and mom. We're family. If you can't tell us who can..."  
  
Tommy trailed off in astonishment and worry as Jason's face crumpled completely. The tears he had so far successfully managed to suppress flooded his eyes and began to slowly streak down his face. "My dad...He hit me. He actually hit me."  
  
"What?!" Tommy exclaimed. "Why?"  
  
"I don't know." Jason replied. "I honestly don't know. I was talking to my mom, she had asked about how we were doing and he started screaming at me. The things he was saying..."  
  
"About what?" Tommy prompted gently when Jason trailed off.  
  
"About me, about you, about us! God, I didn't know how to react so I just stood there for awhile and then I walked to the door. I just didn't want to hear it anymore. He grabbed my arm and when I turned around I met his fist. I..." Jason shielded his eyes with his hand as he got himself under control.  
  
Tommy wrapped his arms around Jason, drawing him close. Jason buried his head in Tommy's shoulder, clutching at the fabric of his shirt. "I don't know what to do, Tommy. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do."  
  
"We'll figure something out together, Jase." Tommy murmured. "It'll work out. I promise."  
  
"I just...I knew he didn't really approve of us, of this part of me but...but I was hoping he'd come around, you know? I thought..." Jason faltered slightly. Then opened up a little more and said something not even Tommy had expected him to say. "I thought that he wouldn't stop loving me for it."   
  
Tommy did not know what to say to that. He looked at his mother, hoping she might have some words that could comfort Jason but she was drawing a blank to. Tommy opted for hugging Jason tighter.  
  
Jason shuddered once. He would not fall to pieces. He would not! Forcefully collecting himself, he gently withdrew from his lover's embrace, glad that Tommy was keeping an arm firmly around his waist.   
  
"Sorry." Jason mumbled, feeling a bit embarrassed he'd broken down like that.   
  
"Nonsense." Sarah scowled. What she wouldn't give for the chance to slap some sense into Mr. Scott! Couldn't he see what a gift his son was? "It's perfectly understandable."  
  
"Still..." Jason began.   
  
"No stills, buts or anything of that sort." Sarah cut him off sternly. "And you are staying here tonight. No arguments."  
  
Jason managed a wobbly smile. "Yes, ma'am."  
  
"Good." Sarah nodded to herself. For right now things would be okay. "What do you boys want, Thai or Pizza?"  
  
It would be a hard night for both the Oliver family and Jason. As soon as her husband got home she had yanked him aside (Literally yanked him into the kitchen before he reached the family room where Tommy and Jason were.) and explained to him what had happened. He had walked on eggshells the whole night making sure he did not blurt out the wrong thing as he was sometimes wont to do.   
  
Dinner was more subdued than dinner before the night of a funeral. Sarah would later remark it was if Jason was already mourning the loss of his father even though he kept up a stoic front the whole night. It did not falter in the presence of Thomas and Sarah again.   
  
When he and Tommy crawled into bed together that night it was a different story.   
  
Normally, when they shared a bed, they held each other and ended up snuggled close together. Tonight, for the first time in their relationship, Tommy held Jason.  
  
Jason pressed tightly against his lover, all curled up and tense as he tried to keep the tears that wanted to fall at bay. Safe and warm in his lover's arms as he was, Jason slowly started to talk, voicing the questions that had tormented his mind since his father's fist had first connected with his body. The things Jason voiced were slightly jumbled but he just had to get them out.   
  
Tommy slowly came to the realization that Jason would have done the same thing if he had not been there. Only instead of having Tommy to comfort him as best he could, Jason would have been voicing his fears and frustrations into the lonely night. It honoured him that Jason trusted him and loved him enough to let go like this in his presence. No matter how open Jason normally seemed he was a very shielded person and knowing he could let his shields down around him, well, that just made Tommy love him all the more.   
  
Jason only relaxed when he finally succumbed to emotional exhaustion and fell into a restless sleep. Tommy followed him shortly, knowing that tomorrow would be nearly as hard.  
  
He did not expect that it would be harder. 


	6. Solutions

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Though if I did Jason and Tommy would both be smothered in Montana's Mudslides (a very, very good dessert) and chained to my bed. ;-)  
  
Author's Note: The next one will be longer. I promise. This was just to tie and set things up.  
  
Chapter 6  
Solutions  
  
The next morning things looked a little brighter. Jason was still hurting, obviously, but during the night he forced that façade of calmness back up. Sarah noticed right away that he was more himself again when she placed a plate of pancakes in front of both boys. She would not normally make them breakfast but she figured if a treat was ever needed it was needed now.  
  
She watched them out of the corner of her eye as she did the dishes, silently cheering when Jason reached out a tucked a stray piece of hair behind her son's ear. It was heartening to see Jason acting as he normally would while in the sanctity of the Oliver home.   
  
Unfortunately the almost peaceful moment was shattered by the doorbell ringing.   
  
Sarah would later wish she ignored it and simply let her son and his boyfriend have one day to recuperate from the night before. But she hadn't expected *him* to be at her front door.  
  
"Can I help you?" Sarah asked, her voice as cold as ice as she stared the vile man down.   
  
"I need to speak with my son." Allen Scott said gruffly.   
  
"Stay here." Sarah commanded. She purposely didn't invite him in and wished the skies would open up with rain just so he got soaked. Snow would be even better.   
  
Walking back into the kitchen she saw Jason laughing with Tommy. She almost did not have the heart to disturb them but she knew the sooner Jason got this over with the sooner he would be able to move on.  
  
"Jason," She called softly. "Your father's here."  
  
Jason's face fell instantly, returning to the expressionless mask almost instantly. His voice was slightly strained when he spoke. "What does he want?"  
  
"He wants to talk to you." Sarah reported.  
  
Jason nodded shortly and stood up. Tommy was about to follow but Jason turned to look at him before he could get out of the seat. "No. I need to do this and I need to do it alone."  
  
Tommy wasn't sure whether to be hurt or afraid for his lover. He settled on being angrier than he could ever remember being at Jason's shithead of a father. He waited until he heard the front door close and then scrambled to the window to see what was going on. Despite her resolve not to Sarah followed him.   
  
They watched as father and son talked or rather, Allen talked at Jason who mostly just shook his head. Then he said something that made Allen's face go beat read in anger. Allen yelled something that made Jason flinch as if he had been struck and then walked away, got into his car, and sped off.   
  
Jason stared after him for a few moments and then slowly and walked back inside. Tommy and Sarah were both waiting for him when he entered. All it took was a glance of his face to know things had not gone well.  
  
"Jase..." Tommy sighed. He just had to know what had happened to his love. "What happened? What did your father say to you?"  
  
Jason shook his head slowly. "I don't have a father anymore. He disowned me."  
  
There was no emotion in the deep voice nor did his face betray what he was feeling. The midnight eyes were dry but they were so empty Tommy shuddered just looking into them. Jason just could not deal with this right now.   
  
"Oh Jase," Tommy did not know what to say. He looked to his mother hopefully but she was at as much of a loss as he was.   
  
Tommy was not sure what to do next. He wanted to hold his lover but he did not know how Jason would react to that. He wasn't really sure of much actually.   
  
Cautiously, Tommy slid his arm around Jason's waist, gratified that his lover accepted the comforting touch. He felt the minuscule tremors racing through the power frame as Jason fought for control. He led his love to the couch, the nearest place he could get him lying down. H wasn't sure if Jason wouldn't just collapse in a few moments.   
  
It was not hard to get him to lie down. A gentle push in the right direction was all it took. Jason curled up on his side and buried his head in his hands, the tremors increasing in size. Tommy sat down next to him and Jason snuggled closer, resting his head in Tommy's lap. Tommy ran his fingers through his lover's short hair gently, trying to sooth him with the soft touch.   
  
Tommy didn't know how long they stayed like that, though it was long enough to make his arm start to get tired, before he heard a car screech to a stop and his mother run interference at their front door.   
  
"Excuse me! You can't just barge in here li..." His mother exclaimed.   
  
"Where's Jason? Where's my baby?" For a moment Tommy couldn't place the voice, only knew it was female and slightly hysterical, but Jason knew who it was immediately and shot to his feet.   
  
In the next instant Helen Scott had entered the room and froze, Sarah on her heels as she scowled at the other women. Tommy felt his heart jump into his throat as he glanced from Jason to his lover's mother. Jason stood stock still, his hands clenched tightly and his body shaking.   
  
"Mom?" The voice was an unsteady whisper.  
  
The one word contained more fear and hope and pain than Helen could stand. She rushed forward and swept her not so little boy into her arms. It was all too much for Jason. He sunk to his knees, his mother going down with him and holding him closer as he started to sob.   
  
"Mommy?..." Jason's voice was nothing more than a strangled plea. He couldn't help it. This was his mom!  
  
"Oh sweetie." Helen's own voice was chocked with tears of relief and pain. She couldn't help it. This was her son! "I'm here now. Everything's going to be okay, now."  
  
Tommy had never been more shocked in his entire life. He knew that it was very unlikely he would ever see Jason like this again, all his grief and fears had just suddenly found an outlet with the appearance of his mother and it was too much for him to handle. Tommy also hadn't felt this grateful in a long time. At least Jason's mother had come through for him!   
  
"Come on, Tommy." Sarah gently tugged her son out of the room.  
  
"But..." Tommy protested, not wanting to leave his lover when he was so upset.   
  
"Only a fool tries to gets in the way of a mother when she's trying to get to her hurting child. Jason will be fine." Sarah told him. "He needs his mom more than you right now. Just leave them be for now. He'll be alright, don't worry."  
  
When they got to the kitchen Sarah enfolded him in a tight hug too. Tommy looked at her a bit strangely when she finally let him go.  
  
"Not one word." Sarah warned sternly. "You're my baby boy too."  
  
Tommy didn't argue. He knew better than to argue with his mother when she got sentimental. And he was still too worried about Jason to feel embarrassed or wonder about just what was going on in his mother's head. That was something he'd never be able to figure out anyway.  
  
It would be another 47 minutes before Helen and Jason made their way into the kitchen. Tommy knew; he'd watched the clock so closely he'd thought it had started to tick backwards at points. Jason looked much worse for wear but he summoned a small, but genuine, smile that let Tommy know things were better than they had been. Tommy couldn't help but hug him tightly.   
  
"You look terrible." Tommy said frankly.  
  
Jason chuckled weakly at that. "Thanks."  
  
"Don't mention it." Tommy gasped his hand and pulled him out of the room. "Let's get you cleaned up, come on."   
  
Jason glanced back at his mother for a moment, as if to reassure himself that she was there, and then followed his lover upstairs, leaving their two mothers in the kitchen. There was a moment of awkward silence before Sarah spoke. She didn't know what to say. She hardly knew Helen and if the other woman was siding at all with Jason's father she knew their acquaintance would not last long.   
  
"So…" She began, completely stumped.   
  
Helen smiled politely. "I wanted to thank you for giving Jason a place to stay during this…mess with his father."   
  
"It was the least I could do." Sarah said bluntly. Mess? It was more than a mess!   
  
"Alan…He won't be a problem for Jason any longer." Helen said, sadness creeping into her voice.   
  
"What do you mean?" Sarah asked.  
  
"I'm filing for divorce." Helen replied with a weary sigh.   
  
"What?!" Sarah exclaimed. Alan was a prick, she knew that but…  
  
"He forced me to choose between him and Jason." Helen shrugged. "I love him but Jason is my only child, my little boy. No one will ever make me abandon him. I love him far too much."  
  
"Good." Sarah couldn't help saying it. "But isn't this a little sudden, I mean, it will hurt all of you if it comes down to this. Does Jason know?"  
  
"Yes, Jason knows, we discussed it. He doesn't like it much but…" Helen sighed. "Ever since Jason came out I've been trying to get Alan to except it. He tried, or said he tried, talking about it with a therapist. I'm not entirely sure that's the truth but…This has been coming for awhile now. I can't let him hurt Jason anymore. I won't let him hurt my son again. It has gone on long enough."   
  
The conversation stopped there as Jason and Tommy re-entered the room. Jason still looked a little worse for wear but all things considered that wasn't too bad.   
  
"Mom?" Tommy asked as he nervously glanced at Helen. "I hate to bring it up now but can Jason stay with us until things settle down."  
  
"Actually your father and I were talking about that last night." Sarah admitted. "You know that technically this house could easily have had a basement apartment and if you two are willing to help convert it could be your apartment."  
  
Tommy, Jason and Helen all looked shocked. Sarah just shrugged. She and Thomas had discussed this before. Even before Tommy had started dating Jason they knew their son would soon be looking for a place of his own and with rent the way it was well…they weren't sure he would be able to afford it. The house had been built with the intention of a basement apartment and could very easily be turned into one. It would give Tommy his space without the money woes or him being too far from home if something went wrong.   
  
When Jason came into the picture they had decided to offer it to the two young men before they started college. That was still a few months away but Sarah knew the messy entanglements of a divorce. It wasn't as though Jason would have been living at home for much longer but since the whole thing seemed to be centred on him and Alan disowning him Sarah thought it might be best for him to put some physical distance between himself and the home he had grown up in.   
  
"I don't know…" Jason looked to his mother. It was almost an ideal solution for him; he wanted out of…he just wanted out! But he couldn't leave his mother all alone, not now.   
  
"That is probably a good idea." Helen put in. For a moment Jason looked startled and a bit wounded. "Jason, honey, things are probably going to get messy and I'll most likely have to sell the house anyway. It would be the best for you if you weren't there for that."  
  
"Oh." Jason sighed and leaned heavily against Tommy. This was all just too surreal. He just wanted to stop.   
  
"You don't have to decide right now." Sarah told him. "You can stay with us for as long as you need to, you know that you're always welcome."  
  
"Okay." Jason mumbled.   
  
"Why don't you and Tommy go take a nice, long shower? You look like you could use it." Sarah suggested. "I want to talk to your mother a bit more."  
  
"Good idea." Tommy agreed.  
  
Jason knew he was outnumbered and was too tired to even try to fight back. Besides, a long, hot shower with Tommy looked pretty good even if Mrs. Oliver did suggest it. But he wasn't going to think of that. He stepped forward and kissed his mother on the cheek even though he knew she would still be here when he was done and then let Tommy lead him from the room.   
  
"Now," Sarah said turning to Helen, who looked nearly as bewildered as her son if you looked past the strong front she put up in front of the boy. She knew she could be of help. She did have a bachelor's degree in law and would have gone further if she hadn't enlisted in the army and then met and married Thomas. And if she couldn't, well, she got the feeling it wouldn't hurt Helen to have a friend as close to the situation as she inevitably was. "Tell me what's happen. Everything." 


	7. Discussions AndOther Things

Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Author's Note: This is for Kitty, who nagged and nagged and nagged and finally got what she wanted! :-) This is definitely and NC-17 part. You miss a lot without it. If you want the "forbidden" scenes e-mail me! There is also a salute to one of Dagmar and Naomi's stories in there. And thanks to cobalt-blue for giving me the idea to do that!  
  
Chapter 7  
  
Tommy sighed as he glanced out the window. Rain sucked. They had made plans with the others to do to the beach today but that was cancelled. Rocky had just called to tell them they changed their plans to getting together at his house later on. "It doesn't look like we'll be going to the beach today."  
  
"I could have told you that." Jason said, not looking up from his book.  
  
Tommy glanced as his boyfriend, confused, "How?"  
  
Jason's face lit up in a smile. "Listen."  
  
Tommy fell silent and, after a few minutes, grinned. He had forgotten how much Jason loved the sound of the rain falling on the roof. And with no one home upstairs as his parents were both at work the sound wasn't as muffled as it normally would be. If you were quiet you could also hear it pattering down on the tiny windows that basically showed the grass of the backyard. 'It's nice sound.' Tommy thought. 'But I like the sun so much more.'  
  
'Although,' Tommy thought as he curled up next to Jason on the couch. 'rainy days do  
have their advantages.' He shivered in appreciation as Jason began to absently rake his fingers through his long hair. Tommy craved these quiet moments they shared. It gave him the chance to bask in the fact he had someone to love and knew that someone loved him back.   
  
Tommy caught the hand running through his hair and kissed the calloused palm. Jason smiled in amusement. He put his book down and shifted so he could return the affection. His fingers resumed their course through the long hair and he tried to bend down for a kiss but did not quite make it.   
  
They both chuckled a little at that. Tommy sat up quickly and scooted closer, wanting to taste Jason's lips. He met no resistance when he reared up enough to kiss his lover tenderly. They parted slowly; more than willing to let other activities come up as they would. It was a lazy day though; there was no need to rush things.  
  
Tommy's mind wandered over the past few months as Jason continued to play with his hair. They had moved into the basement apartment as soon as it was set up, about a week and a half after that awful morning. In that respect things had worked out great. The apartment wasn't too small, though it wasn't big, and Tommy's parents respected the boys' need for privacy, even adding a lock to the door down to the basement and giving them both keys for the backdoor that led directly into their new home. Plus the rent was cheap; they had insisted that they were going to pay rent as the Olivers would have let them get away without doing so, and if either of them screwed up dinner in their small kitchen area too badly Sarah usually knew how to fix it.   
  
Friends wise they were doing well too. After graduation, which neither Jason nor Tommy attended because Tommy was racing and Jason's transcripts from Geneva had been mucked up until a week after grad, the Rangers had split up a bit. Preparing for college and pursuing careers did that, it was part of growing up. Tommy was away more than he liked learning the ropes of racing for his soon to be starting career. But they still managed to find time to get together, the gang wouldn't be separated that easily. Trini, Zack and Kim were all due back soon too so that would change the group dynamics again, hopefully in a good way.   
  
As for things at the Scott household...they had at least calmed down somewhat. It wouldn't be too long before the divorce was final and Helen Scott had already put the house up for sale, giving the two of them a fair bit of furniture because she was moving into a condo apartment closer to downtown Angel Grove. Alan had left town completely, getting the first available transfer to a new city. It was all hard on Jason but everything else going right in his life made it a whole lot easier to deal with.   
  
Tommy was pretty much happier than he could ever remember being and knew Jason felt the same way about their relationship. And their love life, well, that was something else all together. They were young and in love, it was safe to say the indulged themselves quite often. There were things they hadn't tried but experimenting together sure was fun. There was, however, one thing that Tommy was starting to want to try...  
  
"Jase?"  
  
"Hmm?" Jason replied lazily.  
  
"What was it like?"  
  
"Huh?" Jason looked completely confused. Tommy blushed and reminded himself that Jason couldn't read his mind, no matter how often that seemed to be the case.  
  
"What was it like you know...the first time?" Tommy couldn't keep a deep blush from staining his cheeks. Jason always seemed so much more comfortable around the topic of sex than he did.   
  
"Actually, my first time wasn't with Darrius. It was with Trini." Jason admitted.   
  
That got Tommy's attention very quickly. "What? When did this happen?"  
  
Jason squirmed a little, remembering that one night. "In Geneva, before I had met Darrius. I was talking to her one night, about a month into my time at the conference, and I kind of let it slip that I was attracted to guys. It was the first time I'd talked about it with anyone and Trini...it didn't seem to faze her at all that I was seriously confused about my sexuality. She actually helped me talk out everything I was feeling. Then, I don't know what possessed me but, I leaned over and kissed her."  
  
"One thing led to another and we ended up sleeping together. It was really my last attempt to be interested in girls. She had pretty much figured that out but didn't mind. I was completely mortified afterwards and I couldn't look at her for days. The only thing I had done right about the situation was to remember to use protection." Jason sighed. "She finally got sick of me avoiding her and cornered me in an empty lecture hall until I talked to her. I don't know what I would have done if she hadn't been so great about the whole thing. I think she understood what was going on in my head better than I did."   
  
"You and Trini..." Tommy chuckled. "I can't believe it."  
  
"You and me both. I have no idea what I was thinking. Or what she was." Jason mumbled, thoroughly embarrassed.  
  
"You weren't her first time were you?" Tommy questioned.  
  
"I am not saying anything about Trini and anyone else." Jason told him. He was not about to betray his friend's trust, even to tell his lover.  
  
"I'll take that as a no." Tommy smiled. "Besides, I think I know who her first time was with. I'm guessing Billy, right before you guys left."  
  
"How the hell do you know that?" Jason asked. It was true, Trini and Billy had slept together before she left, as her farewell present to him, but Trini had only told him because he had felt bad about wrecking her first time. It was a shock to find out that really the two quietest members of their little gang had been the first two to lose their virginity.  
  
"You should have seen him right after you guys left. He was caught between a kind of stunned happiness and sadness. We all figured that he and Trini had finally hooked up." Tommy smirked. "If you guys hadn't left the next day he would have been on cloud nine."  
  
"It shocked the hell out of me when she told me." Jason admitted and then sighed. "After that I stopped even trying to be attracted to girls. I didn't advertise the fact that I was gay but if someone had asked me point blank I wouldn't have denied it."  
  
"Why did you go out with Emily then?" Tommy asked.  
  
"I never actually went out with Emily. I...well, it's kind of complicated." Jason sighed. "I pretended to go out with Emily because that Eddie guy was pushing her to go out with him. I know what kind of reputation Eddie's got and I knew Emily was trying to distance herself from those guys so I agreed. We were never more than friends, I told her we would never be more than friends before I agreed to the charade and I kind of got the impression that she had figured out why that was even though she never said anything. Just mentioned once she had a cousin who was gay."  
  
"So the rumour that she broke up with you for him got started how?" Tommy queried. That had been quite embarrassing for his lover, especially since Jason had had to nip the rumour in the bud because Emily had gone to visit her aunt in Wisconsin for the summer.   
  
Jason grimaced. "Eddie. You should have heard the things he was saying about her. It was disgusting. He knew you and I started dating so he figured it was open season on her. I don't think he figured I would still stick up for her if I wasn't dating her."  
  
Tommy smiled softly at that. He didn't know what Jason had said to Eddie but all the rumours about Emily had stopped completely. At least, the ones focussing mainly on her had. The ones that involved him and Jason were still fluttering about. It had, by now, spread that they were together.   
  
They had, after a few days, confirmed the rumour. A few had problems with it but not enough to cause either of them any distress. Most didn't give a rat's ass if they were lovers or not. There had been a rumour going around that Jason and Emily had had such a bad break up she had "turned" him but it was started by BiBi Geoffery who also kept telling anyone who would listen she would "turn him straight" again before the end of the month. That had sent Jason into a nearly hysterical laughing fit that lasted over five minutes. Even mentioning it for a week after had been enough to set him off again, much to BiBi's chagrin.   
  
"What was your first time with Darrius like though?" Tommy asked, steering their conversation back to what he wanted to know. "You've never talked about it much."  
  
Jason shrugged. "I thought it was kind of rude to talk about it with you."  
  
Tommy blushed. "I was just wondering..."  
  
"It's alright, Tommy." Jason smiled. "I didn't want to make you uncomfortable, that's all. Darrius wouldn't care if I discussed what we did together with you. He was always completely frank about sex and all his past experiences."  
  
"So, what was it like then?" Tommy asked again.   
  
"I don't know." Jason tried to think of how he could explain it. "The first time we tried it was kind of a disaster. I was way too nervous about the whole thing, it was probably too soon in our relationship to try in the first place but I wanted to know what it felt like so..." Jason shrugged. "It hurt more than it should have and I asked him to stop nearly right away. He did, of course. We didn't that again until just before he left."  
  
Jason flushed slightly at the memory. "It was better then."  
  
"Why?" Tommy wondered aloud.  
  
"A bunch of different reasons. The second I'd been fingered and rimmed before so I knew how to relax better. I wasn't anywhere as nervous because we'd been together longer and because I felt more comfortable with what we were doing than the first time. It still hurt a little at first but no where near what it had before and when I got used to being filled like that it felt pretty damn good." Jason thought it was a good, straightforward explanation but he was still blushing slightly.   
  
After Tommy remained silent for a few seconds Jason spoke again. "Why'd you ask?"  
  
Tommy fidgeted slightly and blushed a very bright red. "I was just wondering what it would be like if we...well..."  
  
"Don't worry so much. I already told you we don't have to do anything you're not comfortable with." Jason told him again. For a guy who was pretty uninhibited when they were actually fooling around Tommy sure was paranoid talking about sex. "I'm in no rush. Yeah, I want to be with you like that but it's not that big a deal. I plan on this relationship lasting a long time, it's not like I can't wait."  
  
"What if I don't want to wait?" Tommy asked.  
  
"Oh." Jason flushed slightly as comprehension dawned.  
  
For a moment neither of them moved, then Jason leaned down and Tommy sat up and they kissed slowly. Jason's hands slid under his shirt, tugging the material up and over his head when they broke the kiss. Jason's shirt was lost next just before their mouths returned to their tender dance.   
  
Tommy's hand fumbled with Jason's belt buckle. He didn't do the best job but before the other young man could pull back and make a goofy remark Tommy's hand crept into his short hair and pulled him down on top of him. Jason managed to wiggle out of his pants after undoing his belt himself. His boxers came off with the pants, leaving him naked on top of Tommy.  
  
Tommy was struggling out of his own pants when Jason pulled back. Tommy attempted to pull him back into the kiss but Jason resisted, instead nipping gently at his throat. "Not on the couch."  
  
"Right. Bed." Tommy mumbled, anxiety and excitement mixing together too much for a great deal of thought.   
  
Tommy's pants and underwear were lost somewhere in the distance between the bedroom and the couch. He wasn't entirely sure where. Jason's arms around his waist and his cock pressing against his backside and his lips and tongue doing wonderful things to his neck intoxicated him far too much for him to take note of an insignificant detail like that.   
  
"You do realize," Tommy moaned as Jason's greater weight pressed him into the mattress. "That if you give me a hickey we'll never hear the end of it."  
  
Jason smirked. "Who says I'm going to give you a visible hickey?"  
  
Tommy's response was to reach up and kiss Jason fiercely. His arms wrapped around his lover's back as their tongues duelled and he could feel the hard cock pressing against his hip as he thrust his tongue into the more than willing mouth.  
  
"What was that for?" Jason asked breathlessly when they had to release each other for air.  
  
"I had to get you to shut up somehow." Tommy teased, planting little kisses along his jawbone.   
  
Jason harrumphed a bit at that as he leaned back, running light fingertips down Tommy's side to make him squirm a little. For a moment Tommy looked a little wary. Jason knew just how ticklish he was. Not that he didn't know the same thing about Jason but still!  
  
Jason laughed and swooped in for a quick, hot kiss and words were soon lost as their engery was used for more pleasurable activities.  
  
Afterwards Jason simply collapsed onto Tommy's chest, for a few moments. It felt good to just lie like that and Jason would have been content to lay there for hours but his penis was beginning to soften. He carefully withdrew from Tommy and pressed a soft kiss to his lips before getting up to dispose of the condom.   
  
He came back in a few minutes with a damp face cloth. After gently cleaning Tommy, who hadn't moved an inch, he dropped the cloth on Tommy's discarded boxers to be dealt with later and crawled back into bed. Jason cuddled close to his lover, draping and arm over him. Tommy tilted his head, seeking and finding Jason's lips. They kissed gently, letting their for now spent bodies mould together.   
  
When they parted Jason propped himself up on one elbow, gazing over his lover's body warmly. He idly traced lazy patterns over Tommy's stomach, liking the slightly disoriented but sated look on his lover's face.  
  
"You okay?" Jason queried.   
  
"Mmm...Yeah." Tommy murmured.  
  
"You sure?" Jason asked again.  
  
"Yeah. That felt pretty damn good." Tommy told him rolling onto his side with a grimace. "My butt hurts."   
  
Jason snickered in spite of himself and snuggled against Tommy, draping his arm over his waist so they were spooned together.   
  
"I'm going to be reminded of this every time I sit down for a week, aren't I?" Tommy grumbled.  
  
"Probably." Jason told him.  
  
"I guess it's a good thing I liked it then." Tommy smiled. He felt a little boneless, like a puddle of goo really but it felt...nice, which was about the only word he could come up with as Jason kissed his collar bone and nuzzled his shoulder.  
  
"Jase?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I love you." 


	8. Injuries and Inquires

Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Author's Note: This one is long and it'll have to sustain people for a while because I'm going to focus on getting out chapter for my other stories. And reviews are always, always welcome as our new members to the Forbidden Scenes club. :o) You'll be getting something for this chapter!  
  
Chapter 8  
  
When Jason got home it was already dark outside. He had been out of town, for his cousin's wedding, for the few days. He was a bit worried. The first two nights he had been there he and Tommy had spoken but last night and this morning before he left, Jason hadn't been able to get a hold of him. He wasn't too concerned. After all Ranger business sometimes took awhile, but the niggling fear that something was wrong wouldn't leave him.  
  
The warm lights that were on upstairs contrasted sharply with the darkness peeking through the basement windows. Jason sighed. He would have liked it if Tommy had been home. The wedding had been beautiful and Joey, his cousin, had been so happy he was there but that feeling was only shared by about half of the family. The other half had looked at him with open disgust, some going as far as leaving when he arrived, and one particularly vile uncle of his had gone out of his way to try and make Jason miserable.   
  
That was part of the reason Tommy hadn't gone with him, even though Joey had had been adamant he was more than welcome. They had both agreed that it would be easier for the not accepting but not openly disgusted relatives if only Jason went. Neither liked it but they didn't want to spoil Joey and his bride's special day.  
  
Entering the dark apartment with a sigh, Jason briefly thought about calling Trini and talking to her about the whole thing since Tommy wasn't around. He dropped his duffle bag by the door and began searching for the light switch when...  
  
"You're home early." A surprised voice said softly.   
  
Jason nearly jumped out of his skin. He instinctively fell into a defensive stance before he placed the voice. Why was Tommy sitting alone in the dark? "Yeah. I stayed for the wedding but Uncle Milton," Jason winced, "well; he was as charming as usual."  
  
"Oh. Sorry." Tommy paused slightly and then sighed in relief. "I'm so glad you're here."  
  
"What's wrong?" Jason asked, fumbling for, finding and finally flicking on the light. He nearly gasped. "What the hell happened to you?!"  
  
Tommy was a mess. He had a bruise on his cheek, a cut above his eye and on his chin and Jason was willing to bet that there were more bruises underneath his clothing. Jason knew his lover well and could see in his eyes that any physical pain he felt was nothing compared to his emotional distress. That was what worried him the most.  
  
But Jason wanted to see how badly hurt Tommy was first. He hugged him briefly before inspecting his face tenderly with his fingers. Tommy let him without protest, tilting his head willingly for Jason's gentle ministrations. It was comforting to know Jason was so concerned about him and the small, soothing kisses Jason pressed against his temple helped him to relax.  
  
Jason stripped him of his shirt next, wincing in sympathy at the trail of large bruises that started at his left shoulder and looped around to the small of his back. He was not fond of what he found marring Tommy's wrists either. They also bore bruises all the way around but the way they were cut and chaffed as if a rope had bit into them concerned Jason much more.  
  
When he was satisfied he had found and inspected all of Tommy's injuries, Jason set about fixing him up. He deposited Tommy into a chair and quickly gathered up what he would need. With deft hands he cleaned and bandaged all the small hurts, pressing soothing kisses around anything that made Tommy cringe away from his helping hands. The wrists were the worst. They were very painful even with all the care Jason took.  
  
It was when Jason was bandaging his wrists, after the painstaking task of cleaning them, that Tommy spoke. "I gave up my Powers."  
  
Jason looked up; trying to read his lover's shuttered face. "The transfer was tonight?"  
  
Tommy nodded. "We found out yesterday that we needed to find replacements by tonight."  
  
"That's not a lot of time. Did you find someone?" Jason asked, keeping his tone carefully neutral.  
  
"Yeah. A guy named TJ Johnson." Tommy's eyes were far away. "He reminded me of you; that's why I picked him."  
  
Jason quickly swallowed the lump in his throat that comment brought on. "And these? Where did they come from?" Jason asked, gently cradling Tommy's hurt wrists.  
  
"Divatox managed to capture me. I was knocked out for most of it. When I came to I was hanging over a void. TJ and Cassie, Kat's replacement, rescued me. I think the burns are from struggling against the ropes. I don't remember everything." Tommy's voice was dead. It sounded to Jason as though a piece of him had been ripped away.   
  
They scary thing was that it had been. Jason knew what it was like to give up a set of Powers and Tommy had been a Ranger for so long...Jason sighed and pulled his lover into his arms, being very gentle so he did not hurt him. Tommy snuggled close to him, relishing the warmth and safety of Jason's strong arms. He felt so loved when he was wrapped up in those arms. It felt like coming home again.   
  
Tommy shuddered slightly as he let himself think back to earlier that night. He knew it was time for him to give up being a Ranger. He did want to move on with his life but a part of him would always long for the time when he was a hero. The feeling of the Power still being there, within him, and yet now completely out of his reach, brought back painful memories of his previous Power losses.   
  
When he was losing the Green Ranger powers Zordon had told him that it was impossible for someone to entirely lose or give up any of the power sources the Power Rangers used. They bearer of the power and the power itself had to connect for a source to be of any use. That connection was impossible to break once it was made. Residues of the power would always remain within the person who bore them, though they would not be powerful enough to use or to cause any damage to the person. Still, the feeling of the great powers all the Rangers once held were there, dulled but there.  
  
The remembrance of that conversation had terrified him after Jason had had to give up the gold Ranger power. The thought that the power that had been killing him was still there had scared him badly. It had taken some extra tests from Trey and a lot of reassurance from Zordon to get him to stop worrying.  
  
"What are you thinking, love?" Jason asked as Tommy grew silent.  
  
"Do you think it's true?" Tommy questioned. "All those times Zordon told us 'Once a Ranger, Always a Ranger' do you think that's true?"  
  
"Yes." Jason answered without hesitation. Tommy looked at him unsurely, waiting for clarification. "Tommy, to me being a Ranger was never the powers, it was more than that. The reasons we were picked to be Rangers, the reason Zordon chose us, let us wield all of that power and bear all that responsibility, that's what makes us Rangers. The powers…That was just what physically embodies it. Being a Ranger is something much deeper than that."  
  
To his surprise and concern, Tommy stiffened and shrugged off his arms. He rose and walked away, stopping in the middle of the room and just standing there. Jason briefly thought of going to him but decided to wait, to see what was going on in Tommy's sometimes muddled head before going after him.   
  
For a moment he just stood there in silence, battling demons Jason could not help him fight, and when he turned he was paler than before. "He never chose me."  
  
"What?" Jason did not follow Tommy's train of thought for a moment. 'What the hell does he mea…Oh shit.'  
  
"He never chose me. I was never one of his Rangers. Rita is the one who decided that I would be one because…You know why she chose me dammit!" Tommy started to pace, agitated and beyond distressed that Jason, his Jason, could feel that way. "I know he never cared for me the way he cared for the rest of you, that I was just there because…because…I don't even know why he kept me around for so long. I always respected him so much but I could never…I was never like you guys, I was only a Ranger because of Rita…"  
  
"Stop it." Jason voice was low and commanding. Tommy couldn't remember the last time he had heard that much steel in the normally warm voice. It grabbed and held his attention even though Jason still sat, seemingly relaxed, in the chair.   
  
"You have not been Rita's Ranger since you joined our side, not to the others, not to me and especially not to Zordon." Jason eyes were nearly burning with intensity. To have Tommy think that of them, him, was insulting. "Do you think Zordon would have let you keep those powers if he didn't think you were worthy of them? You think that he wouldn't have found a way to take them from you? Honestly, you were so down when you first joined us all he had to do was ask for you to give them up and you would have handed them over."  
  
"You may have been too wrapped up in your own guilt to see it but he loved you just as much as the rest of us. He saw something in you that you were too blind to see on your own. And you still can't see it! I can! We all can! You just insist on continuing to wallow in the guilt you force upon your self. Get over it already! You were coerced into being evil. We all know that that wasn't you. We've all forgiven you. Just because you can't let go of what happened doesn't mean the rest of us still hold it against you." Jason was mad now. He was mad at Tommy for still holding on to all this and was simply enraged at anyone who had contributed to him having a guilt muscle the size of Russia.  
  
"Do you really think that Zordon would have given you the White Ranger powers, the best powers there were, if he didn't trust you and care for you? Do you really think I would have been willing to step down as leader to anyone except you? Do you think I would have let someone who wasn't worthy look after my team, my family!? If you do that's just fucking insulting." Jason had to spit out the words, but his voice never rose. Tommy thought he would have preferred it if he had yelled. This quiet, intense voice was something he had only ever heard when Jason was very angry.  
  
"You served as a Ranger longer than any of us. Zordon trusted you with more powers and responsibility than any of us. What right do you have to question how worthy you are when you held the Power longer than the rest of us? What does that say about everyone else?" Jason sighed and looked away. His voice had lost the hard edge when he spoke again, he just sounded sad. "I know what happened to you was horrible, believe me I do, but you can't hold on to it like this. It's insulting to the rest of us, especially Zordon, and more importantly it's not healthy for you to think that way. You were, no are a great Ranger, no matter what you're beginning was and Zordon saw that in you just as surely as he saw it in anyone else."   
  
Tommy stood there for a few seconds longer than abruptly turned and left the apartment, retreating to the backyard to stare up at the cloudless night sky. He didn't know how to react or what to think of how to feel. It was all too muddled and, as much as he would have liked to crawl into Jason's arms, he did not trust himself to keep from saying something stupid that could hurt his lover.   
  
Jason sighed in sadness and frustration as he heard the door close behind his lover. Normally he would go after him but this time...this time Tommy had to decide what to do. He couldn't believe that Tommy could think that way and actually knew it probably wasn't really how he felt.  
  
'Stupid withdrawals' Jason thought. He knew what Tommy was going through on some level; he had gone through Power withdrawals twice himself. After a few hours of what Zordon had told him was something like their bodies going into low grade shock from the loss, that first night they just hit you like a tonne of bricks and the week following was pretty crappy as well. Tommy had to be feeling those bricks.   
  
Mood swings were the first thing to look out for. Jason knew what he could expect to see in Tommy for those. Anger, guilt, depression, loneliness, hopelessness, Tommy's reactions were, from what he had observed during the whole Green Ranger mess, very similar to his own. He just hoped Tommy wouldn't go on crying jags like Trini had in Geneva.   
  
There were other symptoms but they varied from person to person. The only other thing that happened to everyone was the nightmares. Jason shuddered slightly in remembrance of those. That would be difficult especially since it was Tommy. Some of his experiences went far beyond what had haunted Jason's dreams while he was caught in the throes of the withdrawals.   
  
It was late when Tommy came back inside. Jason was, by that time, in bed, browsing over some material from AGU he had received for his upcoming classes. He was having second thoughts about business being his major. It all seemed rather tedious and all he had done was look over the prep material!   
  
For a moment Tommy just stood unsurely at the foot of the bed. Jason smiled, if a bit wanly and put the sheets he had been looking over down. Tommy didn't need anymore of any invitation. He quickly stripped to his boxers and crawled into bed beside Jason.   
  
They didn't touch yet. Tommy lay on his side and Jason on his back. Tommy's face displayed a bit of guilt and shame and apology while Jason's remained impassive.   
  
"Tell me more about the wedding." Tommy requested, after a moment. He needed a safe topic for now. He knew that Jason wouldn't let what had happened before lie but before they got into that he wanted something simple to discuss.   
  
"It was pretty simple. Gina really didn't want a big wedding but with all my relatives there were over a hundred people. I think the Scott family made up about sixty percent of the room." Jason told him, a bit surprised at the inquiry. "Joey wanted me to tell you that they really wished you could have come with me but understand why you didn't. They're planning on dropping in after their honeymoon for a few days for a visit."  
  
"It would have been too uncomfortable Jase..." Tommy started.  
  
"I know." Jason cut him off. "It was awkward at times with just me there. It's okay. They understand and so do I. I wouldn't want you to have to put up with Milton anyway."  
  
"He was that bad?" Tommy questioned, knowing that Jason's uncle reaction to his coming out had been worse than his father's reaction.  
  
"Yeah." Jason sighed. "At the bachelor party he got drunk and it made him really speak his mind. My dad just walked out. He wouldn't even look at me. He didn't speak to me the whole time. Just carried on as though I wasn't there are all."  
  
"Oh, Jase." Tommy murmured. "I'm so sorry."  
  
Jason sighed. "Me too. Joey decked him though."  
  
"Who? Your dad?" Tommy asked.  
  
"No. Milton. He gave him a great right hook to the jaw that knocked him flat on his ass. Then he said he wasn't welcome at his wedding anymore." Jason smiled slightly. He didn't completely approve of Joey's use of the fighting skills he had taught him but it had been a big relief not to have to deal with his bigoted uncle.   
  
Tommy couldn't help but laugh. "That I would have liked to see."  
  
Jason had to grin. "Quite a few of the other people there, the ones who are okay with, well, me, started cheering when Joey and the best man literally threw him out of the place."  
  
"Good." Tommy felt a deep sense of satisfaction over that. At least some of Jason's family weren't bigoted idiots.   
  
Jason smiled slightly in reply and they fell silent for a few moments. Tommy hesitantly reached for Jason's hand. Encouraged when Jason didn't pull away, he scooted closer so they were very nearly touching. Jason's other arm tentatively sneaked around Tommy.   
  
"I'm sorry." Tommy said.  
  
Jason snorted. "Do you even know why you're sorry?"  
  
Tommy fidgeted slightly. He couldn't help but entertain the thought that Jason would make a great father one day, hopefully. "No. Other than I upset you no."  
  
"I was a little harsh too." Jason sighed. "I know you're feeling, well, wonky right now. We both know why you're out of sorts; we've both been through it before. But your tirade, it wasn't just the withdrawals talking. You might not have said anything otherwise but I'm almost glad you did. You can't think like that. You've sacrificed too much to think that it meant nothing to the rest of us, to think you mean nothing to us. We've had this conversation before. More than once. So why is this guilt suddenly back?"  
  
"I don't know." Tommy muttered. He really didn't want to do this and knew Jason probably didn't either. Neither of them really cared much for examining their psyches like this but Tommy knew Jason. If it meant someone he cared for just wasn't right he would sit down and talk it out until the problem was solved. He was bull headed that way even though he wasn't really one for that much introspective.   
  
"You don't know." Jason eyebrow rose. They both knew that answer was not acceptable.   
  
"I don't...I just..." Tommy sighed. "I wasn't ready to give up being a Ranger yet. I mean, I knew it was coming, I knew we had to give it up so we could get on with the rest of our lives at some point I just wasn't ready for that to be now."  
  
"That's understandable. You guys really should have had more warning about the switch." Jason groused. "But it doesn't explain why you feel, well, unwanted by Zordon and basically everyone."  
  
"Dimitri knew we didn't really want to leave yet. Adam even said something to her about it." Tommy chewed his bottom lip in...sorrow? anger? fear? He wasn't exactly sure at the moment. "She didn't really seem to care."  
  
"Dimitri isn't Zordon." Jason said flatly. He had met the new Ranger mentor once and had not been overly fond of the puzzling being. "Dimitri probably didn't understand what she had in you guys. She was probably looking for her own Rangers, not directing Zordon's old ones who didn't need her weirdly worded directions."   
  
"But..."  
  
"No." Jason cut him off. "Don't even start that. Don't think like that. I know you want to but you were put through too much, sacrificed too much, to believe Zordon, or any of us, ever doubted you like that. I know that none of us ever did, not without outside influence. Don't let anyone, yourself included; tell you that you were a bad Ranger. I'll have to kick their ass if they do."  
  
Tommy had to laugh at that. And he did. He laughed hard and long and hysterically until he was clutching Jason, burying his head in his chest and gasping as he fought off the scalding tears that bubbled up from inside him.   
  
"It's okay. It'll be okay." Jason repeated the words over and over again, not sure whether Tommy heard them or not. He held Tommy close, rubbing the back of his neck and trying to comfort him until Tommy seemed to collapse boneless against him, still shuddering with suppressed cries.   
  
Jason waited until Tommy regained control and then led him to the bathroom. Tommy followed listlessly, not really caring what was happening as long as he had Jason to hold on to. A cool, damp washcloth was pressed into his hands. He automatically swiped it across his overheated face, pressing it against his eyes that were stinging from the effort he had put into keeping himself from crying.   
  
He vaguely registered that Jason led him back to their bedroom, pulling him into bed and into his arms. They just lay there for awhile until Jason's arm fell asleep and he had to pull it out from under him.  
  
"Uh..." Tommy moaned in slight protest. He smiled slightly as Jason tried to shake the pins and needles out of his heavy feeling arm.   
  
Jason grimaced slightly for the few seconds before feeling spread back into his limb. He hated that feeling and hated that he had had to pull away from Tommy to get rid of it. Tommy seemed to think it was funny though so he smiled and quickly settled back into the bed, carefully positioning his arm so it wouldn't do that to him again.   
  
"Feeling better?" Jason grinned and pressed a teasing kiss to the smiling lips.  
  
"A bit." Tommy's smile dropped a little. "It's just..."  
  
"Yeah, I know." Jason sighed. "It'll pass."  
  
Tommy snorted. "In about a month."  
  
Jason shrugged. "So then we better enjoy it while you're not being a grouchy jackass, huh?"  
  
Tommy groaned and whacked Jason with a pillow while he laughed. Jason mock scowled at him but it got the scowl got mixed up with his wide grin and laughter which made Tommy laugh harder at the weird expression. Jason shook his head in amusement as Tommy managed to get himself tangled in the bed covers as he finished his little laughing fit.   
  
"Oh man." Tommy managed to gasp as he sprawled on the bed, his mind half on figuring a way to get his foot untangled from the sheets. "I needed that."   
  
"You're one weird guy." Jason commented with a snort.  
  
"Yeah, but you love me anyway." Tommy grinned cheekily and kicked the covers off his foot. He rolled over, intent on closing his heavy eyes and snuggling into Jason's arms, but stopped short and winced when his hand came into contact with the solid chest to soon, jarring his painful wrist.   
  
"Ow." Tommy complained.   
  
Jason caught his arm, carefully avoiding sore spots, and pressed a kiss just above the marred flesh with a teasing smile. "Did that make it better?"   
  
Tommy snorted even as a leer spread across his features. "I know where you can kiss to make it better."  
  
"If I thought you could manage to stay awake until the end I might consider it." Jason replied. He hadn't missed the way Tommy's eyes were drooping and not surprising all things considered.   
  
"I would not fall asleep during that!" Tommy protested even as he sighed in contentment as Jason arms came around him and he was carefully pressed against the hard chest. He couldn't help but close his eyes and savour the moment.   
  
Jason manoeuvred them so Tommy lying partially on top of him, his dark head resting over Jason's heart. One of Tommy's arms crept around his neck as Jason's arm came to rest across his back. The other hand reached for and found the clicker for the small TV in their bedroom.  
  
Tommy opened one eye as the sounds of David Letterman sounded. It was near the end and he had no clue who the guest was but he watched drowsily anyway. He was thinking of attempting to convince Jason that there were better activities they could be doing as the show ended but sometime before Politically Incorrect followed the gap toothed comedian Tommy had drifted off.   
  
***  
  
It was dark.  
  
He didn't like the dark, not this type of total oppressive blackness at least. It reminded him too much of the time he had been being made into Rita's pawn. That cocoon had been suffocating, choking out his goodness and freewill and sense of right as it poured evilness and cruelty down his throat while he fought for air.  
  
He shuddered at that. For a brief moment it felt like he had been back there. Then he was released into this nothingness again.  
  
No light. No sound. No movement. Nothing.  
  
It was beyond creepy.  
  
"Hello?" He called, hoping for an answer he doubted would come. "Is anyone here?"  
  
Nothing.   
  
He hated that.   
  
For a moment he thought about sitting down or walking or something but he wasn't sure if he wouldn't just tumble off the edge of a bottomless pit or something. Knowing his luck he was just a step away from it.   
  
He sighed.  
  
Waiting, standing stock still and waiting, was horrible. Plus he was really jumpy. Even through the nothing he felt something.   
  
He shook his head. That didn't make sense.  
  
But he still knew something was there, something was waiting to spring on him. Hey, why argue with past experience.   
  
He was right, of course, though he didn't sense anything was there until fingers clutched at his shoulders and a voice began to hiss in his ear.   
  
"Ready to play again?"   
  
He would have jumped but those spindly fingers held him firmly in place. He wanted to run but knew already he could not move.   
  
"Play what?" His own voice was thready and trembled.   
  
Another set of those fingers moved, sliding along his throat. If he could have moved he would have shuddered violently.   
  
They traced his neck as if slitting his throat.  
  
"Hide and seek." The voice hissed into his ear as the fingers stopped only to jab at his shoulder. Hard.  
  
"Hide and seek?" He echoed.  
  
"Of course..." The voice was closer now. He could feel the foul breath on his ear and it made his skin revolt.   
  
No one was allowed to touch him like that except his love...  
  
Then the being, no, the thing was gone. He heard skittering laughter that wasn't laughter but something like it perverted by pure darkness. A sickening parody of that happy sound.   
  
"Can't find me. Can't ever find me." The voice taunted from further away, coming from above and below at the same time. There was that horrid, sick sound again. "You're not the one seeking. No. You don't want to find me. But I keep finding you."  
  
Tommy did shudder that time as the thing skittered off to...He didn't know where.   
  
The sound came again. The awful sound. This time to his right. He thought it was his right. He didn't know...  
  
"Yes. I find you. You hate me. You despise me. And I keep coming back. Why? Hmmm...I bet you wonder why?"  
  
"No." He tried to sound strong, firm, in control. But he didn't. He wanted to cry out for help but when he opened his mouth to yell the fingers were back at his neck. Long bony fingers around his neck, just tight enough to be not yet squeezing.   
  
"Shh...You'll ruin the game."  
  
Gone again. Slinking off again. That sound...Didn't come.   
  
He stood still. Waiting. Hoping. Praying. Had it gone?  
  
"No. Never."  
  
He wanted to scream.   
  
"You know why..."  
  
A finger brushed against his temple. If he could move he would have rocked back in sudden pain.  
  
He was there in the cocoon. Evil in liquid form oozing down his throat. He was there in the dark dimension. Bringing the sword down as Jason lay helpless before him. He was there in downtown Angel Grove. Making building crumble at his will. He was there at the lake. Aches and pains and depression coursing through his tired body from his soul tearing loss. He was there at the Command Centre. Unable to stop it from being destroyed. He was there in the chair. Strapped down as jolts of electricity were fed into him. He was there unable to breath. His love killing him as he once tried to kill his love...  
  
He was there...  
  
"You know why..." The voice hissed, this time as if hanging just above his head. "The worst images are your own."  
  
Gone. Please, oh please, stay gone.  
  
"This game tires me." To the left. Getting closer...   
  
No. Stay away.  
  
"No more fun."  
  
Away. Away. Away.  
  
"Time to end."  
  
Please...  
  
"Found you." The voice was there in his ear again, closer than it should be. Too close...  
  
"Shouldn't have let me find you." Something pressed against his back. "But you can't hide. You can't run. I've already got you..."  
  
It was sharp, he thought, a knife. But then if wasn't. It was like the muzzle of a gun. But then it was the tip of Rita's wand. But then it was a power blaster. But then it was....  
  
The tip of his own dagger.   
  
Maybe..Maybe...  
  
He didn't know! He didn't know!  
  
"Good riddance..."  
  
Make it stop! Make it stop! Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP!!!  
  
Nononononononononononononononono....   
  
Tommy's eyes snapped open and his whole body twitched up as if he had been shocked by an electric current. He could feel droplets of sweat oozing from his pours and every muscle in his body was coiled tight, ready to snap into action at the slightest threat.  
  
It came as a light touch on his shoulder.   
  
Tommy lashed out, quick reflexes were the only thing that kept his 'attacker' from receiving a fist to the nose, and instinctively fell back into a defensive stance. Unfortunately for him he literally fell. Right off the bed he had been lying on and onto the floor.   
  
Tommy scrambled to his feet. His pulse raced so fast it was almost painful and nothing yet broke through his unadulterated panic.   
  
After that dream, Tommy wasn't sure why he hadn't just taken off. He wanted to run but ever fighter's instinct that had ever been driven into him screamed for him to fight back, to confront the vile creature that had attempted to...to...  
  
"It's okay, Tom. It's okay, love. It was just a dream. It wasn't real. You're okay. It's okay."   
  
Things began to snap back into focus. He wasn't trapped in that soulless darkness anymore, the light beside the bed was one, creating a low glow in the bedroom. He wasn't in danger; in fact he was safer than he would be anywhere else. And there was no vile creature haunting him, torturing him, there was only...  
  
"Jason." Tommy's voice was desperately relieved.  
  
...looking at him in concern and speaking in a low soothing voice as he tried to get through to his lover. Tommy lowered his fists and just stood there, shaking, unable to move.   
  
Jason approached him slowly. He cautiously wrapped his arm around Tommy's waist and, when the other man didn't resist, led him back to the bed.   
  
Tommy curled into himself on the bed as Jason arranged the blankets around them and then held him close. For a few moments Tommy just buried his head in the nape of Jason's neck and tried to enjoy the nest of warmth surrounding him.   
  
But it wasn't enough to chase off the chills that still wracked his frame. That dream, that horrible thing, it had just been too intense, too bone chilling and had left him desperately wanting to feel anything other than coldness. He wanted, needed, more warmth. He just...needed to feel more...  
  
Twining his fingers in the short hair at the back of Jason's neck, Tommy began nipping and sucking on the sensitive flesh in front of him. He heard Jason's breathing hitch.   
  
"Tom?"  
  
"Please, Jason. I need...I want..." Tommy's words were interrupted as he began to nip-kiss Jason's throat. Jason moaned as he latched onto one particularly sensitive spot and bit down in earnest. He knew in some part of his foggy mind that he would leave a visible love bite behind but he was past the point of caring.   
  
It wasn't long before Jason had taken control and given Tommy exactly what he needed.   
  
The dream dulled by the excruciating pleasure Jason had just given him, Tommy buried his face in Jason's neck when the broke apart, ending up in the same position he had been in before. This time his body was relaxed though he was still pressed as tightly against Jason as he had been before. He dimly thought of returning the favour but as the blankets were wrapped around both of them again he realized Jason didn't expect or even want him to.   
  
"Feel better?" Jason asked for the second time that night errr...morning.  
  
"Yeah." Tommy replied, wantonly revealing in the nest of warmth surrounding him while he could.   
  
"Want to tell me what that dream was about?" Jason wasn't stupid. He knew what withdrawal induced nightmares were like even if Tommy's appeared to be more violent than any he had ever suffered through. On the other hand, he had woken up and dealt with them alone.   
  
Tommy shook his head. Later he knew he would only because Jason wouldn't let him out of it but the darkness was still on the very edge of his mind, still waiting for a chance to drown him again. He wanted, needed, to stay enfolded in warmth as long as possible to stave it off.   
  
"Okay." Jason murmured, kissing the top of Tommy's forehead lightly before resting his cheek there. His hand still trailed up and down Tommy's back slowly. "Later though?"  
  
"Yeah." Tommy mumbled his voice muffled as he tried to bury further into Jason.  
  
Jason tightened his embrace and wrapped the blankets tighter in response. "You want to try and sleep or just rest like this for awhile?"  
  
"Like this." Tommy murmured. Shivering at the thought of sleep even through he knew he wouldn't be able to stop his eyes from closing soon.  
  
"Okay." Jason sighed ruffling his hair a bit.   
  
Tommy smiled a little. It was beyond helpful to have Jason with him. Waking up from those awful nightmares he had had when the Green Ranger Powers were waning all alone had been damaging at the time. Having Jason, who understood why he had woken up stifling a scream and wouldn't judge him for it, helped to dispel those awful images.   
  
They would both eventually fall asleep and Tommy would inevitably have another nightmare. A revamped version of his battle against Jason in the dark dimension, with a deadly new twist that his lover suffered, was enough to force Tommy awake with a near scream. He had kissed Jason again and again afterward, trying to reassure himself that it was just a dream, that everything was okay and Jason was alive and well.   
  
Jason let him take the reassurance he needed, not that he minded letting Tommy kiss him nearly senseless, and then tried his best to return some comfort. He hoped that Tommy wouldn't leave bruises where he clutched his back and arm but said nothing. If Tommy needed to hold him tightly Jason was not going to deny him that comfort.   
  
After the second nightmare they abandoned the bed, taking some blankets with them and settling down to watch a movie on the couch. Jason would have liked more sleep but Tommy was looking particularly frazzled. There was no way he was going back to sleep that night and Jason really didn't think it would be a good idea to leave him alone.   
  
'Besides,' Jason thought as he stretched out on the couch with Tommy basically lying on top of him. 'I'll probably doze off again but I'll still be right here while he's awake...'  
  
He awoke in the morning to a blue screen on the TV, stiff muscles that protested the night on the couch, and Tommy's limp weight sprawled on top of him. It wasn't the most comfortable position but it was kind of...nice to feel the warm weight pinning him down as Tommy slept, seemingly without disturbing dreams.   
  
Tommy twitched slightly and Jason realized he had made that assumption too soon. He carefully freed one of his arms and gently ghosted it over Tommy's back. It worked. Tommy nuzzled his head against Jason's chest slightly and murmured a few incoherent words before settling.   
  
Jason lay as still as he could for as long as he could but eventually his muscles began to protest too much. He just had to move. He tried to shift his body carefully but it didn't work. Tommy stirred and even as Jason tried to stay still once again the sleep glazed brown eyes opened.   
  
It took them a moment to clear, Tommy was never at his best or sharpest when he first woke up, but when they did a warm, lazy smile spread over his features. He stretched slightly, looked at Jason for a few moments and then rested his head on the broad chest again. Jason smiled, a hand gently moving up Tommy's back and...  
  
He groaned in sudden pain as a muscle in his leg spasmed, reminding him of why he had been trying to move in the first place.   
  
Tommy felt his lover's body stiffened and, quickly looking up, figured out the reason by the grimace that flashed across Jason's face. He hastily got off him. Jason eased himself up and carefully began to stretch out the cramped muscle.   
  
"You okay?" Tommy asked as Jason stood up, trying to work out the remaining kinks in his leg. He shifted slightly himself, the after effects of his last big fight making themselves known.   
  
"Yeah." Jason replied taking the opportunity to stretch out his other stiff muscles as well. "Man, I hate it when that happens."  
  
Tommy snickered. "As much as you hate it when your arm falls asleep?"   
  
"Oh shut up." Jason grumbled around his grin. "You had the more comfortable positions last night both times."  
  
"You make a nice pillow." Tommy teased glad they'd move to the couch just because it meant Jason didn't have an actual pillow to chuck at him.   
  
"You are so...Ow..." Jason grimaced again as he stretched out his shoulders. He had too broad a back to be scrunched on their smallish, second hand couch half the night. The only reason Tommy hadn't come out of the experience worse for wear was because he'd been sprawled all over him. "What about you? You okay?"  
  
"Yeah." Tommy continued after Jason's eyebrow rose in disbelief. "Okay, I'm better than last night at least. I'm still a bit sore and my wrists hurt a bit. I feel kinda...achy all over."  
  
Jason nodded. "Like you're getting over the flu."  
  
"Yeah." Tommy replied.  
  
Jason shrugged that was something neither of them could do anything about. If Tommy just felt like he had the flu he was getting off lucky even. Jason had felt like someone had taken a hammer to his head, a blender to his stomach and attacked the rest of his body with a whole lost of other not nice appliances. He had been told more than once to see a doctor because he looked like death warmed over during the first few weeks of the Peace Conference. Zack had been the one who had felt like he was getting over the flu the first time and Trini...well, Jason didn't want to think about what she likened it to.   
  
"It'll pass." He said.   
  
Tommy smirked. "Yeah, in about a month."  
  
"Didn't we have this conversation before?" Jason grinned.  
  
"Yeah. It ended with me getting a blow job so..." Tommy smiled back cheekily.  
  
Jason snorted. "There were other things that happened in between."  
  
"Nah. Already blocked those out. I only recall the good stuff." Tommy replied as Jason stepped closer to where he was still sitting on the couch.  
  
"Well...there is one thing I think I need to do right now..." Jason's voice bordered on suggestive.  
  
"Which is?" Tommy murmured.  
  
"Check your wrists and re-bandage them. I should have a look at your other injuries too." Jason replied diffusing the mounting excitement in both of them.  
  
"You're such a tease!" Tommy groaned as Jason retrieved the first aid kit from where he'd left it last night. "Way to spoil the moment!"  
  
"If those wrists get infected, which they could easily become, because I don't check them you'll wish I spoiled as many moments as I need to." Jason told him, gently unwrapping the bandages from last night. It was difficult, in some spots they stuck slightly. "You should probably go to the hospital to have someone check them out anyway."  
  
"How the hell would we explain that?" Tommy wondered aloud.  
  
"I have no clue. How are we going to explain you to anyone?" Jason replied.  
  
"The accelerated healing that comes with the power doesn't fade until after the withdrawals are over." Tommy mentioned.  
  
Jason smirked. "I wasn't talking about your injuries..."  
  
Tommy scowled slightly but it didn't hold when Jason leant down and kissed his palm before examining his wrists. His touch was gentle but it didn't stop Tommy from wincing slightly as his fingers brushed over the damaged skin.  
  
"You really should get these looked at Tom." Jason said worriedly. "A couple first aid courses doesn't mean either of us can deal with something like this. Maybe we can show it to your mom..."  
  
"And say what?" Tommy sighed. "That I've been a Ranger since just after we moved here and an evil villain captured me last night and tried to kill me. That would be betraying our identities and besides if I said something like that she'd have me committed."  
  
Jason had to agree with that but... "We could say you were mugged?"  
  
"Like that's anymore believable. She knows I would fight back. She lectured me about not being invincible too many times when we were living in Los Angeles to know I'd try to fight back." Tommy snorted. "Besides where would the wrist injuries come from if I was mugged."  
  
"Well..." Jason sighed. "Villains have taken civilians hostage before and Kat could back you up on it. We could just say you were in the wrong place at the wrong time..."  
  
"Or we could just forget about i...Ow!" Tommy pulled his wrist away from Jason as he prodded his wrist a little less gently.   
  
"Not while touching your wrist gets a reaction like that. There could still be splinters of the rope under your skin. It could get infected easily. So unless you want me dunking you hands in hydrogen peroxide regularly until the burns get better..." Jason warned.   
  
"All right, all right. But you're doing the explaining." Tommy sighed. "You're a stubborn cuss, you know that right?"  
  
Jason snorted. "This from the guy who can't let go of his guilt after four years?"  
  
"Shut up." Tommy grumbled as he blushed slightly.   
  
Jason chuckled and leaned forward to press a teasing kiss to Tommy's lips before saying cheekily, "Don't worry. I still love you."  
  
It wasn't usual for Thomas to go into work on Sundays but someone somewhere had screwed up one of his accounts. Sarah wasn't exactly sure what had happened, she had tuned him out when every other word turned into a muttered curse. She felt sorry for his assistant. The young man trying to climb the corporate ladder was edgy enough as it was from what she seen when she had had to drive Thomas to work because his car died halfway down their street.  
  
It was kind of nice to be able to sit at the table and nurse a cup of coffee without having Thomas trying to steal the crossword from the newspaper she was reading. She wasn't much for peace and quiet, at least not all the time, but once in a while it was pleasant.  
  
Unfortunately, once in a while never lasted long enough.   
  
She heard Tommy and Jason coming when they reached the top of the stairs that led down to their apartment, their normal, teasing banter floating into the upstairs. She smiled slightly, hoping that they weren't coming upstairs because one of them, probably her son, had burnt what was meant to be their breakfast beyond recognition.   
  
"Um...Mom?"   
  
At Tommy's hesitant voice Sarah put down her paper. Her eyes widened at the sight of her son. He looked like he'd been beat up!  
  
"What happened to you?!" She exclaimed getting up immediately.   
  
Before Tommy knew what was going on he was sitting in the just abandoned chair being severely mothered. It was a familiar feeling. He had gotten himself into more than one scrape as a kid and had experienced the overboard behaviour quite often until he'd stopped getting into messes.   
  
"Mom..." He tried to begin.   
  
"Jason can you go and get me some bandages and antiseptic from the bathroom?" Sarah said, interrupting him.   
  
"Sure."   
  
Jason was barely out the kitchen door when Sarah turned to Tommy, overwhelming concern in her eyes and asked with a quiet intensity. "How did this happen?"  
  
Tommy sighed. "It's a long story."  
  
For a moment Sarah was quiet. Then, "Did Jason do this to you?"  
  
All Tommy could do for a few seconds was gape at his mother. His mind couldn't even wrap around the concept. Finally he managed to sputter, "What?!"  
  
"Did Jason hit you?" Sarah asked again with the same quiet intensity.   
  
"No!" Tommy exclaimed, utterly appalled at the suggestion. This was Jason! This was one of the most honourable guys he knew, Zordon's first chosen leader, the person whose values and merits had gotten him into the Peace Conference, and more importantly his best friend and lover! Jason would rather throw himself off a cliff than hurt someone intentionally. "How can you even think of that? This is Jason we're talking about!"   
  
"You must admit this is very suspicious..." Sarah began.  
  
"He wasn't even around when this happened. God, how can you accuse him of something like that? How can you think that little of him?" Tommy was quickly becoming distressed. He had not had a good night at all, the only reason it was bearable was because of Jason, and now his mother was attacking him!  
  
"I've seen it before, Tommy. You know that. You're my son and if you're being hurt I don't care what I thought of the person before." Sarah replied her voice concerned. "How in the world would you get bruises and rope burns like this if..."  
  
"I was held hostage. And Kat can back me up on that." Tommy said through gritted teeth. "We got hijacked by some of the metal things that attack the city. Kat got away I didn't. There have been abductions before; you know that, I was just the unlucky hostage this time. The Power Rangers freed me. Call Kat if you don't believe me."   
  
Sarah raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "That story..."  
  
"Is the truth. Why is that harder to believe than Jason hitting me? Check the paper. The Power Rangers always make a statement if hostages were involved. Call Kat. If Jason was hurting me do you think she'd cover for him? Hell, no! You know Kat better than that. You know Jason better than this." Tommy grimaced. It was too early for this. He was just glad they had called Kat and verified their cover story before coming upstairs...  
  
"Tommy..."  
  
"Uh...Did I miss something?" Jason asked, standing awkwardly in the doorway. Tommy knew he hadn't heard their conversation. He just looked confused. If he had heard what Sarah had said he would have looked hurt.   
  
"Nothing." Tommy answered quickly. He glanced at his mother for a second, hoping she wouldn't say anything. He knew Jason liked his parents a lot, knowing Sarah could think that of him would be painful knowledge.   
  
"Okay." Jason knew there was more to the conversation than he had heard, which was just Sarah saying Tommy's name in a concerned and slightly frustrated way, but was not going to get into it right now.   
  
Sarah took care of her son quickly and silently which was fine with Tommy. He wasn't sure he would be the most civil person. The awkward silence stretched until Jason couldn't stand it anymore.  
  
"Okay, what's going on? Is Tommy hurt that badly? Should we take him to the hospital or something?" He asked the concern in his voice very noticeable.  
  
"Nothing's going on." Tommy nearly growled. Jason eyebrows rose until they threatened to reach his hair.  
  
Sarah looked at him for a moment before replying. "No. I can take care of him. These rope burns are a bit tricky…"  
  
"Don't you dare say I told you so." Tommy interjected quickly shooting Jason a tiny grin.  
  
"…but they aren't too bad. You'll just have to be careful not to let them get infected or to re-open the abrasions." Sarah finished. "I told you so?"  
  
"Jason thought I should show you what happened." Tommy said softly. "Or go to the doctor. He didn't want anything to get infected."   
  
Sarah fell silent again and Tommy didn't say anything more either. Jason didn't pry, just gave him a few confused glances. He thought Tommy was still mad at him for insisting he see someone about his wrists.   
  
Oh well, He thought. I can always make it up to him later... Before Jason had any time to consider just how he would do that Tommy had grabbed him by the arm and was pulling him downstairs.   
  
"Um…Thanks!" Jason managed to say to Sarah by twisting around. He nearly tripped down the stairs because of it. "What's with you?"  
  
"I want to go out." Tommy replied curtly.  
  
"Um…Why?" Jason was thoroughly confused now.   
  
"Because." Tommy said.  
  
"Okay, hold on a minute." Jason planted his feet so Tommy came to a halt. "What is going on? What did I miss because it seems to have been pretty important?"  
  
"Nothing." Tommy said his voice muffled as he put on a long sleeved shirt.  
  
"Bull. Nothing doesn't make you want to get out of here when before all you wanted to do was lie around. Nothing doesn't make you be rude to your mother. What is going on?" Jason demanded.   
  
"Just…" Tommy sighed and paused. He bit his lip and shook his head. "Can I tell you later?"  
  
Jason narrowed his eyes at the suggestion.  
  
"I'll tell you! Don't give me that look! Just…Later, okay?" Tommy requested. He didn't want to explain now. He didn't know how to tell his lover that his mother thought he had beaten him. How in the world do you explain that to someone?  
  
"Oh no. I'm not falling for that again. The last time you told me you'd tell me later I didn't find out for three weeks!" Jason grimaced at the memory.  
  
"That was three years ago and it was supposed to a surprise. It wasn't my fault you walked in at the wrong time and…"  
  
"Tommy, just tell me. If it's bad enough that you're rude to you mom I think I need to know. I'm worried about you." Jason told him.   
  
"I'm fine." Tommy insisted.   
  
"No, you're not." Jason repeated.  
  
"It's just something my mom said, okay?" Tommy said.  
  
"Which was?"   
  
"Can't you just leave it at that?" Tommy asked angrily.   
  
"No." Jason answered.  
  
"She asked me if you'd done this to me! She all but accused you of hurting me, alright?" Tommy spat out. "Are you happy now? Is that good enough? Or do you want what she said word for word?"  
  
Jason stiffened and for a moment looked like someone had hit him. A slight shudder ran through him and he slowly turned away from Tommy.   
  
Tommy felt like hitting something. He knew it wouldn't be easy to tell Jason what his mother had thought. He'd wanted to avoid it entirely. The worst thing he could have done is said it angrily like that. It made him feel like even more of an ass. Not that Jason didn't provoke him into saying it but still…  
  
"Jase…" Tommy tried softly.  
  
Jason was quiet for a few seconds and then let out a long sigh. "Tommy, she was just looking out for you. She's your mother it's her job no matter how old you get. And yeah, it must have looked liked I'd...It must have looked weird and the explanation wasn't the most realistic even if it was mostly true. Plus she's a nurse; she's probably seen some pretty awful things. You can't fault her for that."  
  
"You can't tell me it doesn't bother you she accused you of that!" Tommy exclaimed.   
  
"I'm not saying it doesn't bother me. It does. A lot. It stings that anyone would think I'd hurt someone, especially someone I love, on purpose. God, the thought of it makes my skin crawl but..." Jason sighed. "It's understandable. I probably should have known she's think that. She had every reason to."  
  
Tommy opened his mouth to say something and then stopped, studying Jason for a moment. His back was tensed and he was staring at the floor with an intensity that could light it on fire. The suggestion bothered him far more than he would say but he wasn't going to hold onto if he could help it.   
  
Instead of speaking, Tommy moved forward and slid his arms over Jason's shoulders, kissing the back of his neck softly. Jason sighed softly. "You should apologize to your mom."  
  
"What?" Tommy exclaimed.  
  
"You should apologize to your mom. I don't know what you said to her when she asked you if I hurt you but I'd bet the farm you got defensive really fast. She was just looking after you. Would you have done anything any differently if you were in her place?" Jason asked.   
  
"Probably not." Tommy had to admit. "I still don't like it though."   
  
"I can't say I like it much either." Jason agreed. "I'd never hurt you."  
  
"Well, duh." Tommy said dryly. "She was just worried about me, I guess."   
  
"Good. Now I've got you convinced of that." Jason smirked a little.   
  
Tommy scowled. "You suck, you know that?"  
  
"I thought you liked that?" Jason snickered.  
  
"And you have a grade 9 sense of humour." Tommy told him.   
  
"Oh yeah. You suck was so mature." Jason turned around and kissed Tommy softly. "Are you going to apologize?"   
  
"Yeah, yeah. Later. And don't give me that look again." Tommy protested. "I want to get out of here for awhile."  
  
"To where?" Jason asked.  
  
"I don't know. You're driving." Tommy shrugged. "I don't care where we go."   
  
"Alright."   
  
"Thank you." Tommy replied. He was glad Jason was around to keep him from falling into the doldrums he had after the loss of the green ranger powers but he could over do it!   
  
Tommy closed his eyes with a sigh as Jason pulled out of the driveway. He felt Jason's hand cover his own and smiled slightly. He wasn't feeling all that great, he knew he'd have to apologize to his mom when he got home, he was certain he was going to be grouchy and irritating and moody for awhile...  
  
And for that moment he didn't care.  
  
Jason's thumb started tracing soothing circles on the back of his hand and he relaxed further into the seat. For that moment he could be completely content. 


	9. The Murphey's Law Day

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize. The pipe incident did happen. Urgh.  
  
Author's Note: As always, thank you to my wonderful beta who is a goddess and a half for putting up with my horrible grammar and stumbling blocks. This chapter is inspired by the combination of many bad days. We've all been there. Flooded Valu-Marts are not good.  
  
Chapter 9  
The Murphey's Law Day  
  
Jason could not remember the last time he felt this horrible.  
  
He pulled his car over to the side of the road and brought it to a stop. He closed his eyes, resting his pounding head on the steering wheel.   
  
How could twenty-four, no, less than twenty-four hours be so awful?  
  
Jason bit his lip as he felt his stomach roll. He hardly ever got sick, but this time, the flu that was going around campus had hit him, hard. It had started out as a somewhat minor head cold and escalated from there. People had always told him he made up for never getting sick by getting by getting hammered by a virus when one managed to weasel past his immune system. Normally, he wasn't sure whether or not he got the short end of the deal.  
  
As he opened the door and leaned outside just in time to spill what little he had eaten onto the asphalt, he was sure he had gotten the worst deal.   
  
Leaning against the seat, trying to get enough wits about him to continue driving home, he absently thought over the awful day he had had, trying to distract his stomach and head from their attempts to make him feel even worse.  
  
*****  
  
"…spread these wings and fly. I ain't here to play gonna live my life everyday. Change, everybody's feelin' strange…"  
  
Jason jerked as Bon Jovi's new single blared out at him from his alarm clock. He moaned softly and reached out, batting at the offending noise until he managed to hit the snooze button.   
  
"…tell all the angels. This could take all night…"  
  
Nine minutes later, Jason repeated the process; this time managing to shut off the Foo Fighters, 'Learn to Fly', instead of just hitting the snooze.   
  
He considered burrowing back under the covers and to sleep since he felt about as good as week old road kill. It was raining and he was sick. He normally walked to class because it wasn't that far away, and why use his rapidly aging car more than absolutely necessary, but he could make an exception this once…  
  
"Shit." Jason rolled over and out of bed, nearly tripping as his head decided to swim so much the room went a bit cockeyed.   
  
  
He could have taken his car to school, except it was currently getting repaired. It was supposed to be finished today, but last month the mechanics shop he preferred had moved to a new location. He would have to take two buses to reach it, now.  
  
"Dammit," Jason muttered as he stumbled towards the bathroom.   
  
He had been feeling a bit under the weather last night and had tried to counter the on-coming illness by going to bed early, right after Tommy had called. Unfortunately, it hadn't worked.   
  
Jason barely managed to get out the door with enough time to get to school. He would have had plenty of time, enough time to grab some breakfast and stop by the drug store to buy some Advil Cold and Sinus, only half-way to the drugs store he realized he had forgotten he was teaching a karate class at five and would not have time between school and picking up his car to make it home before the lesson. He had to go back to grab his equipment.   
  
When he left the house the second time, he knew he could make it just on time, if he hurried and made no extra stops.   
  
Arriving with about a minute to go before his class started was not fun. Arriving with damp clothing because it was raining so hard he had gotten wet through his raincoat was even less.   
  
Arriving and receiving an essay that he had passed by a measly 2% was downright rotten.   
  
To be fair, the essay was not up to the standard work Jason usually turned in. It was lower by a great deal partly because it had been due the day Tommy left for his first circuit tour. And partly because Jason was so frustrated with the whole course he was ready to tear his hair out.  
  
By the end of the three-hour lecture, Jason felt about ready to pass out or throw up, or maybe both. His head *hurt*. Normally he could, stand this course more than his other ones. The lessons could even be considered semi-interesting because of his vibrant, and sometimes border-line insane, professor. The class was tolerable because of Professor Richards most of the time.  
  
Today, Jason didn't think he could have stood the most interesting class in the world. His whole body was starting to ache and Jason knew that the rather nasty bug currently going around campus had found a new victim. In any of his other class, Jason would have been tempted to leave during one of their fifteen minute breaks, or even catch some sleep as the professor droned on, but this class was small and the most important one he had.   
  
His position in the select group of students going for AGU's Co-op Business degree was not a small thing. He had been the last student admitted to the program. His GPA was just high enough to qualify him, and his time in Geneva had ensured him that final spot.   
  
Some of his classes were great; his favourite was, surprisingly, the optional humanities course he had selected; some were okay, like the one with Professor Richards, but the rest were simply horrible. Envisioning three more years of this made him want to throw his all-too-expensive textbooks into a garbage compactor.   
  
And now it seemed he wasn't even doing well in them.  
  
Jason sighed softly and closed his eyes, the lights were too bright. They were making his head hurt even more, and though he tried to concentrate, the lecture was starting to sound more like a continuous, annoying buzz than coherent words...  
  
"Mr. Scott?"  
  
Jason looked up somewhat slowly, feeling like his head would explode if he moved it too quickly, and felt his face redden when he realized Professor Richards was in front of him. The rest of the class was empty.  
  
"Caught the bug, have you?" Richards asked, his tone overlaid with humour. "As at least half of the teaching staff have. I believe my TA is still asleep in my office using a pile of economics papers as a pillow. She has come down with it rather badly, as well."  
  
"I'm sorry, sir," Jason mumbled.  
  
"No harm done. Half the class was looking more than a little glassy-eyed and a few were swaying as if they were about to fall over.   
  
We adjourned early and you were not the only one oblivious to that," Professor Richards told him.   
  
"I do wish to talk to you about your commitment to this program, however. Why are you here, Mr. Scott? This is not the first time you looked as though you wished to be as far away as possible and I doubt illness had anything to do with those times."  
  
"Sir?" Jason asked in confusion and slight apprehension.   
  
"Why are you bothering with this degree? To be quite frank, you look like the sort of person who would get about as much enjoyment out of working in an office as you do attending these classes," Richards asked again.   
  
Jason shrugged. He had no idea what to say. "I want to open a dojo. I want it to be successful so a business degree seemed like the way to go."  
  
"Why do you want to open a dojo?" Richards pressed.  
  
"I..." Jason's mind blanked for a moment. It was hard to think of the last time he hadn't planned to open a dojo after he graduated high school. It just seemed like something he could do. He liked teaching karate, sharing the discipline he loved with other people, and opening a dojo had always seemed like a logical action.   
  
He sighed. He was too achy and tired for this conversation. "I love sharing karate with other people, teaching them to love it like I do."  
  
"Hmm." Richards looked at Jason for a moment and then nodded. "Jason, this program will get steadily harder over the next three years. It has been nearly a year and already your marks are dropping sharply. Even if I do not take into consideration the last essay you handed in, there is still a steady decline that is much more than any drop the other students have been showing.   
  
Your enthusiasm for the courses that are mandatory for this degree has never been more than a mild interest and that is pushing it. I think you would do well to take a serious look at whether or not it would be in your best interest to continue this course so that if you wish to change your major you do not lose any more time."   
  
Jason was unsure how to react to that.   
  
"You are a bright student; you would not have been accepted to this program if you were not. I would not take the time to advise you if I did not think you had promise in another field. Consider your options and think over what you plan to do when you have finished your degree. You may find you are better suited for something else." Richard looked carefully at his student. "For now I would suggest you go home and get some rest. This virus does not seem easy to get rid of, if you continue going full speed."  
  
Jason exited the classroom feeling more dazed than when he had entered. His mind was a whirl, not a good thing when it hurts to think and he absently remembered to go to the cafeteria to get something to eat. Maybe if there was something in his stomach his head would stop throbbing a little.   
  
He was still chewing on the sandwich while he waited for the bus, his mind too occupied to notice his rain coat was leaking again because the clouds had decided to release buckets of rain, again.   
  
The bus was crowded, smelly and made his head reel.   
  
The sandwich hadn't helped much; it actually made him feel kind of queasy because the bus driver decided it was a good idea to go really fast and then jerk to a quick stop that made half the people on the vehicle stagger to stay upright. By the time he got off to catch his next bus Jason was convinced everyone would have fallen if it hadn't been so packed there was no room to.   
  
The smells in the repair shop were, thankfully, less of a disturbance and he didn't feel as sick as he had because he had managed to get a seat on his second bus. Plus the driver wasn't insane, even if he did try to start up conversations with the passengers, sing, and make a stop at a donut place to get coffee.   
  
He managed to vaguely concentrate on what he was being told by the mechanic, including that the repair job had cost about $200 more than the original estimate. That was going to put a big dent in his budget. It looked like he'd be eating Kraft Dinner and canned Ravioli for awhile.  
  
Jason tried again to buy Advil on his way to the dojo where he had a part time teaching job. Unfortunately, he decided to go to the Valu-Mart that was in the same plaza as the dojo. A pipe in the deli had burst and the store had been shut down. He could see the frantic employees scrambling around inside and the top of the water spurting to just above the hot case. At least he wasn't the only one having a bad day.  
  
There was, mercifully, Advil in the dojo even though it was just the regular kind. One of the morning instructors took one look at Jason, tossed him the bottle and offered to cover his class. Jason was about to take her up on the offer but a cell phone call from the girl's little sister had ended that. It seemed AGU wasn't the only place that had been hit with the virus.  
  
It was too late to cancel the class, though, Jason was tempted to. He would have had to contact all his students that morning before they left for school and at that point he had thought he would be fine by the class. He was just glad the virus wasn't contagious at the stage he was in. There had been posters up at AGU saying two days before any symptoms showed up and the first day they were noticed it was contagious. For the last two days, if you really felt like crap you weren't, going to give it to anyone else.   
  
Luckily for Jason his class was a group of advanced students, most of them in high school. They were preparing for an up-coming tournament. It was far enough away they weren't worried yet but close enough that they could use the practice time.   
  
It was the first part of the day that ran somewhat smoothly.  
  
It ran smoothly, that is, until the end of the class. As the class was being dismissed a student's mother called saying she would be late picking her daughter up and asked if someone could stay at the dojo with her until she arrived.   
  
The dojo closed early on Thursdays and all the other instructors, except one who was giving private lessons for another twenty minutes, had already left. Jason figured that waiting another few minutes was not going to be a problem.   
  
When the tired green van pulled up forty-five minutes later, the student's father was very sorry. The mother's car had broken down half-way home and no one else in the family had known the student wasn't with her until she got home via a cab after the tow truck had taken her car away. It was slightly comforting to know he wasn't the only one having a bad day.  
  
By the time Jason had closed the dojo for the night the pharmacy nearest him was closed and he really didn't feel like driving to another one. He could go without anything special tonight. He had regular Advil at home and he knew Sarah and Thomas probably had Neocitrin or something if he felt any worse. He would have settled for being able to go home and curling up in bed. He might as well sleep through feeling wretched, if he could.   
  
That wasn't an option either. He made the mistake of grabbing the mail on his way in. Jason wasn't able to simply forget about a letter from his father's lawyer once he saw it in between two envelopes that looked like they contained bills.   
  
The papers inside were not too much of a surprise. Jason had been waiting for them to come ever since the day his father had drove away from him that morning outside what was now his home. That didn't mean they stung any less, though.  
  
Jason doubted he would be able to get much sleep after receiving something like that. Instead, he sat at the table, alternating between trying to balance his budget to accommodate the extra money he needed for his car and going over his essay so he wouldn't make the same mistakes twice.   
  
Jason wasn't having much luck with either when he heard the door open and someone come in, stomping rather loudly. He hadn't even gotten out of his seat when Tommy came storming into the room.   
  
"What are you doing here?" Jason asked, a smile quickly spreading across his face.   
  
Tommy wasn't supposed to be home for another three weeks.   
  
"Well, aren't you glad to see me?" Tommy said sarcastically, a scowl crossing his face. "I've been trying to get in touch with you all day. Where were you?"  
  
Jason's eyebrow rose curiously as the smile faded from his face. Tommy was in a foul mood, just what he needed. "I've been in class and then at work. You know I'm not home during the day most of the time."  
  
"You need to get a cell phone," Tommy muttered.   
  
"You can pay for it then because I can't," Jason replied. "What happened?"  
  
"Nothing," Tommy said as he headed into their bedroom to change.   
  
"Yeah, right, and chickens lay potatoes," Jason muttered.   
  
For a moment he thought about pursuing the matter and finding out what was bugging his lover but he wasn't sure his head, or his rolling stomach, could take the confrontation he knew it would end up being. Dragging things out of Tommy was like talking sense into a cave troll.   
  
Jason was scratching out a whole paragraph in the botched essay when Tommy re-entered the room. He glanced up and nearly smiled. Tommy was pacing and didn't even seem to realize it.   
  
After a few moments Jason decided being able to see him pacing out of the corner of his eye was more distracting than talking to him. "You want to tell me about it?"  
  
"No," Tommy snapped.  
  
"Fine." Jason only managed to last a few seconds more. The sound of Tommy's feet stomping on the floor continuously was making the ache in his head even worse. "Stop pacing."  
  
"What?" Tommy asked, confused and still angry.  
  
"Stop pacing, please. It's driving me crazy and you don't even know you're doing it. Sit down, lie down, go hit the punching bag on the back porch but stop pacing." Jason rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying to relieve some of the pressure that had built up there. "I don't know what the hell the matter with you is and right now I don't care to deal with it if you don't want to talk about it. Just stop pacing!"  
  
Tommy froze for a second and Jason thought maybe he would get a little quiet. Maybe Tommy would even realize something was wrong and leave him be for awhile.   
  
But then Tommy opened his mouth and started ranting. Loudly.   
  
Jason tried to tune him out. Normally if Tommy wanted to rant Jason let him until he ran out of steam. The quickest way to get him to see reason was to not get angry in return. Jason couldn't always remain calm when Tommy's temper snapped, which wasn't very often, but he tried to and doing so worked for the most part. Tommy usually did the same with him.  
  
It did not take long for Jason to reach his limit. His head hurt, he had had a crappy day and his stomach had started to hate him as well. He was trying to just ignore Tommy's words for the most part but what he did manage to catch through the buzz in his ears was rather mean. He was not going to deal with this too. He couldn't take this as well so he just walked away.   
  
Tommy grabbed his arm as he walked past him but Jason shrugged him off and glared at him. "Fuck off!"  
  
Jason managed to get to his newly fixed car and get in. He thought about just sitting there in the driveway but he knew if Tommy really wanted to argue he would do it right on the street. Sighing, he turned on the car and drove off.  
  
*****  
  
Before the door had shut behind his lover Tommy knew he had seriously screwed up. Jason had never just walked away from him like that before. He wasn't like that.   
  
Tommy had followed Jason outside, but not quickly enough. Watching Jason drive away made him feel guilty. He hadn't meant to lash out at Jason like that it was just...well...  
  
Tommy sighed and went back into the house. There was nothing he could do about it until Jason came back. He would have to explain and apologize. Just because he was having a bad day didn't mean he had to take it out on Jason.  
  
Tommy's scheduled vacation time was not for another three weeks but a few things had gone horribly wrong at the latest race, or the test runs for the race. One of his uncle's other drivers was testing his car while he was going over something with the head mechanic. The car had spun out of control and crashed into the wall. No one was hurt, the other driver escaped with little more than a few scratches, but the car was not going to be fixed for a while.  
  
So Uncle John had given Tommy his vacation time early even though it messed up the plans he and Jason had made and would mean he went down a few seats in the standings. He had managed to find an early plane ride home and had snatched the last ticket before realizing he would have to be at the gate in less than two hours. He hadn't been able to get in touch with Jason and, to top it all off, he had been seated between an old man who snored loudly and a small child who cried and tried to climb under the seat repeatedly.   
  
When he arrived home he was in a foul mood and Jason was an easy target for his anger. Tommy knew he was going to have to make it up to his love when he came home. He had been in the wrong and was not going to try to get out of it especially since he had hurt his lover.   
  
That confused him though. Jason was normally much more patient than that. He had to be at the end of his rope to snap so quickly.   
  
Thinking about it, Tommy realized that Jason had seemed off. He knew Jason had been worried about getting sick, he had sounded like he was getting a sore throat on the phone the night before.   
  
Tommy sighed. There was nothing he could do about it until Jason got home. Jason didn't have a cell phone, he was on a limited budget because both boys had insisted they pay the Olivers some kind of rent, even if it was lower than average. He would just have to wait.   
  
His stomach growled and reminded Tommy he hadn't eaten since breakfast since he was not a fan of airline food. On his way into the little kitchen the paper full of red scribbles caught his attention a Tommy paused long enough to see what it was. He had to bite back a sympathetic groan when he saw how scathing the comments Jason had made for himself in the margin were on top of the rather poor mark.   
  
The papers beneath the essay saddened Tommy even more. He sighed as he looked at them. He didn't mean to snoop around like this but when Jason came home he wanted to know what not to say to upset him further. Besides, Jason always shared everything with him.  
  
The letter was from Alan Scott's lawyer informing Jason he had been disinherited and that his father was taking steps to legally disown him. They both knew that Jason's father would be taking steps to distance himself from his, as he thought about it, former son but sending him a letter about it was just cruel and unnecessary. Tommy was fed up with Alan stepping in and out of their lives simply to shake Jason up. It was overkill and the other man knew it. He just wanted to remind Jason of the choice he had made when he refused to deny his feelings.  
  
Tommy gritted his teeth in anger as he put the letter down, resolving to tear it to shreds, or better yet, let Jason tear it to shreds.   
  
'...or better yet, let Jason tear it to shreds.'  
  
If Alan didn't stop playing this silly, hurtful game soon Tommy was going to step in and put an end to it. He didn't know how but he wasn't going to let Jason be hurt by that man any longer.   
  
Chewing on some leftover, microwaved pizza, Tommy sat down to puzzle over what he was going to do when Jason came home. He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he nearly missed the sound of the door opening and someone stumbling inside.  
  
*****  
  
Jason stumbled into the bathroom almost as soon as he was through the door. He barely remembered driving home, all he could think about was getting to the toilet before he lost control of his twisting stomach again. The room was spinning so badly he could not keep track of it and he had to shut his eyes to block out the dizzying objects.  
  
He didn't know how long he had been kneeling over the toilet, his stomach heaving, when a pair of strong arms propped him up just as he was in danger of crashing to the ground. He vaguely realized it was Tommy holding him, speaking to him and gently wiping his sweaty face with a cool cloth but his grip on consciousness was slipping. Within a few moments he lost his hold and everything blacked out.  
  
Fuzzy images penetrated his hazy mind as he drifted towards and away from semi-consciousness. He was aware of Tommy holding him while Sarah knelt over him in one moment but in the next he registered being in a car, his head and shoulders in Tommy's lap and the weight of a thin blanket covering him. Then he was somewhere else and the brightness of the room hurt his eyes so much he had to keep them closed.   
  
Someone he didn't know but vaguely knew could be trusted was speaking words too fuzzy to understand.   
  
Then he was home again. He knew someone, probably Tommy, was taking care of him while he continued to drift. He realized liquids were being forced into his reluctant body and could vaguely recall a trip or two to the bathroom but everything was murky and blended together. Jason knew the snatches of images he could make out were interlaced with periods of unconsciousness and time was passing but he couldn't grasp how much.  
  
It was early evening the next day before Jason blinked tired eyes open and fully grasped what was going on around him. It was a moment before he could focus but when the room snapped into place he looked for and found Tommy sitting in a nearby chair, thumbing through a magazine.   
  
Jason's throat felt like someone had rubbed sandpaper up and down it but he spoke anyway, his voice a hoarse whisper. "Tommy..."  
  
Tommy glanced up to see weary dark eyes watching him and quickly moved so he was perched beside Jason on the bed. He pushed back Jason's limp hair with a gentle hand. "Hey, welcome back, how are you feeling?"  
  
"Not so great," Jason replied honestly.   
  
Tommy slipped an arm underneath his shoulders, helping Jason sit up, and pressed the mug that had been on the bedside table into his hand. "You need to drink more and there are some pills you're supposed to take."  
  
Jason grimaced slightly when the liquid touched his tongue. "I hate tea."  
  
"I know but you're supposed to drink it," Tommy told him. "My dad is going to buy more Gatorade later."  
  
"Gatorade?" Jason questioned, sipping the weak tea and trying to ignore the taste.  
  
"Yeah. The doctor was worried about you becoming dehydrated so anything with extra electrolytes that you can keep down is good," Tommy told him.   
  
"Doctor?" Jason tried to sort out the fuzzy half memories but his head still hurt too much to really think about it.  
  
"After you passed out in the bathroom last night we took you to the hospital. You were pretty out of it," Tommy explained. "Did you eat anything at AGU yesterday?"  
  
"Lunch." Jason looked dubiously at the pills Tommy was trying to get out of the packet one handed.  
  
"I thought so. You and about seventy other students, not to mention a couple profs, came down with food poisoning.   
  
Something about the cheese, I can't remember what he said, and you're taking the pills. Two are just over the counter sinus medication. You have a sinus infection on top of the food poisoning and the doctor wanted to see if it could be taken care of without prescription drugs.   
  
The other one the doctor prescribed and I can't pronounce," Tommy told him, getting the pills free and putting them in Jason's other hand.   
  
Jason didn't feel up to arguing. He swallowed the pills, aided with another few sips of the tea. He grimaced at the taste but didn't comment on it, instead fixing his gaze on Tommy. "So what's up? Why are you home? I'm glad to see you but you were in one hell of a foul mood earlier or it was yesterday now I guess."  
  
"Car crash." Tommy quickly went on as Jason's eyes widened. "Not me. It was another driver and he wasn't hurt but the car was pretty badly damaged so I got my vacation time early."  
  
"Hell of a way to start it," Jason observed dryly, sipping more tea at Tommy's urging.   
  
"It hadn't been the best day by the time I got home," Tommy admitted, looking sheepish. "I took it out on you just because you were there. I'm sorry."  
  
"S'okay. I might have done the same thing if I hadn't been feeling so shitty," Jason told him.   
  
"Your day looks like it was worse than mine." Tommy found Jason's hand and squeezed it gently. "I saw the papers."  
  
Jason shrugged, his face immediately shuttering. "Yeah."  
  
"Jase..." Tommy wasn't sure where to begin.  
  
"Not now. Please." Jason looked a bit desperate. "I'm not up to talking about it now. Later, I promise. I just...not now."  
  
"Okay," Tommy agreed. Jason was sick he didn't need to deal with that too. "Finish the tea. Mom will have my head if you don't."  
  
Jason sighed and drained the mug, wanting to get it over with. It was a mistake. He drank it too fast and regretted it almost immediately afterwards. His stomach rolled in complaint and his head, determined not to be outdone, decided to start the room spinning again.   
  
"Jase," Tommy helped steady him as he slumped forward a bit, clutching his stomach, "are you going to be sick again?"  
  
"No," Jason moaned softly. His stomach hurt and his head felt worse but he didn't feel like he was going to throw up. "No, I think I'm okay."  
  
Tommy snorted, helping Jason lay back down. "I wouldn't go that far."  
  
Jason curled up on his side, still clutching his stomach. He closed his eyes against the spinning room, hoping it would help his dizziness subside.  
  
"Get some more rest, Jase," Tommy suggested gently, stroking the dark hair gently.  
  
"Mmm," Jason replied with a vague affirmative, his body seeking sleep once more.   
  
Within moments deep, steady breaths told Tommy his lover had drifted off again. He stayed sitting on the edge of the bed but drew back slightly and let out a shaky sigh as he rubbed his hand wearily over his face.   
  
It had been a long night even though his mother had insisted they take shifts watching Jason. They really hadn't needed to do that, Jason would have been fine if they hadn't but Tommy had been too worried not to and Sarah wasn't going to let him exhaust himself by staying up all night worrying over Jason.   
  
It didn't make that much difference anyway. It wasn't like he had gotten much sleep. He kept seeing Jason's ashen face before his body went heavy and limp in his arms. Tommy had been terrified when his lover blacked out on him in the washroom.   
  
It had turned out alright. Jason wasn't really that ill, the combination of ailments was just too much at once. He wouldn't be able to go back to school or work for a few days but since so many other students had come down with food poisoning as well it was not going to be a problem. Tommy was going to fill in the classes that the other instructors at the dojo couldn't swing. It was all worked out already.  
  
Tommy sighed softly and leaned over Jason, letting his fingers drift through Jason's hair. He hated being at odds with him. Normally they tried to make up before they went to bed when they fought but circumstances, mainly Jason being unconscious, had prevented that. Watching over him while he was sick but knowing that Jason could wake up still mad at him grated on his conscious. It was a relief to know things were okay between them again.   
  
Jason made a soft sound, and for a moment, Tommy thought he was going to lose the tea, but instead he uncurled a bit, and moved closer as if he was looking for Tommy in his sleep. Tommy smiled indulgently and settled down beside him, his grin spreading as Jason curled up against him. Having spent the night worrying over Jason was catching up to him and he was happy to close his eyes and join his lover in sleep. 


	10. Phone Fun

Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Author's Note: As always, thanks go to my wonderful, wonderful beta, who made this chapter much more coherent than it was! NC-17 stuff in this chappie so if anyone wants to get it and join the Forbidden Scenes club let me know. It's damned hard to take phone sex out of a chapter so the NC-17 version is the better one.  
  
Chapter 10  
  
"Hello?"   
  
"Why are you so out of breath?" Tommy asked, concerned something was wrong and he wasn't there to help, again  
  
"I just got in. I was practicing in the backyard."  
  
"So, you're all sweaty and I'm not there to enjoy it?"  
  
"Yep. Don't worry. It's not half as fun when you're not here."  
  
"Good. It shouldn't be."  
  
"Hardy-har-har."  
  
"I'm a race car driver not a comedian."   
  
"It shows."  
  
"Very funny. Can you make it to the race?"  
  
"Yeah. I booked four days off. David agreed to take some shifts for me so I could go see you."  
  
"Great. I'll get Uncle John to book your flight."  
  
"I could do that, you know."  
  
"Not when he's paying for it."  
  
"What?!" Jason exploded, not quite believing what he had heard.  
  
"Relax, it's my birthday present."  
  
"Tommy..."  
  
"He won't let me pick you up either. He says you'll need time to put the red bow on."  
  
"Your uncle is a weird guy."  
  
"The sense of humour runs in the family."  
  
"I feel bad not paying for this."  
  
"Don't. It's what I wanted for my birthday. Of course the in-nothing-but-a-red-bow-part will have to wait until you get to the hotel."   
  
"I'm sure the flight attendants wouldn't be thrilled if I dressed the part for the flight."  
  
"Don't bet on it. Hey, did you get your marks back?"  
  
"Yeah. I made honours but missed the Dean's List by 3%."  
  
"Aww, that sucks."   
  
"S'okay. Honours were good enough it seems."  
  
"You heard back already?"  
  
"Uh-huh. I've got a conditional acceptance provided my marks in those two summer courses stay at an Honours level, which they will. I know I can do well in them."  
  
"That's awesome, Jase. When'd you hear back from them?"  
  
"I just got my letter this morning."  
  
"So we have something besides my birthday to celebrate while you're here?"  
  
"If you keep it up we'll have more to celebrate. I heard you got another top ten finish."  
  
"That was fast. I doubt my parents even know that yet."  
  
"I keep track. They update the website with the results pretty quickly. I checked when I got home."   
  
"That's sweet. A bit stalkerish but sweet."  
  
"Like I need to stalk you. You're the one itching to get into my pants whenever you come home."  
  
"Well, who wouldn't be?"  
  
"Lesbians." Jason deadpanned.   
  
"Well, yeah, true."  
  
"Anyway...your parents do know. I told them you placed seventh as soon as I found out."  
  
"There goes my surprise."  
  
"Your mom would have found out before you called her anyway. I think she has the site in her favourites. Besides we knew you could do it."  
  
"As you've told me repeatedly."  
  
"It takes time to get things through your thick head," Jason teased.   
  
"You normally like my head."  
  
"Smartass."  
  
"You like that too."  
  
"I think the image of my hot sweaty body is getting to you."  
  
"You know it."  
  
"What about you?"  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"What are you doing now?" Jason reiterated.  
  
"I just got out of the shower."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Uh-huh. No towel, either."  
  
"Dammit."  
  
"Changed out of those sweaty clothes yet?" Tommy prompted.  
  
"I'm stripping in our bedroom as we speak."  
  
"Tease."  
  
"You started it."  
  
"Are you naked yet?"  
  
"Eagar, aren't you?"  
  
"I just don't want to leave you behind."  
  
"You're stroking yourself already, aren't you?"   
  
"Uh-huh."  
  
"Dammit."  
  
"'Fuck it' would be more appropriate. Are you naked yet?"  
  
"Yeah. Ohh..."  
  
"God, it's fucking sexy to hear you moan like that. It makes me even harder."  
  
"Mmm. Hell yeah."  
  
"You always make this so goddamn sexy. I don't know how considering we're just jerking off together over the phone."  
  
"Well, that was bitter and basically killed the mood." Jason deflated slightly.  
  
"I miss you. I want you to be here jerking me off instead of in Angel Grove jerking yourself off."   
  
"We've been apart longer than this before."  
  
"I know but I also know I'm going to see you again soon and when I think about that I want it to be now instead of in two weeks," Tommy blathered.  
  
"Tommy..."  
  
"I know, I know but..."  
  
"Tommy, close your eyes."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Close your eyes. Just do it, okay? Trust me on this one."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Are your eyes closed?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Do not touch your cock until I say so," Jason ordered.  
  
"Okay."  
  
Jason proceded to show Tommy just how fun phone sex could be until Tommy laid panting and gasping in a hotel room while Jason did the same laying on their bed at home.   
  
"Feeling better?"  
  
"Yeah. But I still miss you."  
  
"Me too, love. Me too." 


	11. Waiting

Disclaimer: See previous.  
  
Author's Note: Thanks, as always, to Mandi for being a super-dee-duper beta. Also, don't kill me. Please? And also, there is an NC-17 version of this.  
  
Chapter 12  
  
  
  
It was early, too early, Jason decided, when something stirred him toward wakefulness. He frowned, too warm and comfortable to fully awaken, and rolled over, flinging an arm across the body moving beside him.  
  
  
  
There was a soft chuckle and fingers ghosted over his shoulder. "I've got to go Jase; I have to be at the track soon. You get to sleep for a couple hours more."  
  
  
  
"Uhh..." Jason complained, open one eye blearily as Tommy slid off the bed.  
  
  
  
Tommy smiled at him, laughter in his eyes, and leaned down to kiss him gently. Jason's arms slipped around his waist and he tried to pull him back into the bed. Tommy broke away laughing. "I can't be late."  
  
  
  
"You're always late," Jason said with a sleepy grin.   
  
"Not to the track I'm not. Uncle John would have my hide," Tommy chuckled. "You can sleep for a few more hours though. There's nothing to do, at least for you, for a few hours."  
  
  
  
"Sounds like a plan to me..." Jason said, laying back in bed and closing his eyes.   
  
  
  
He heard Tommy chuckle, then the sounds of him trying to rummage around the room quietly, which made him noisier than normal. Jason tried to hide his grin waiting... waiting... waiting...  
  
  
  
At the sound of the shower turning on Jason's opened his eyes and grinned. He slipped out from under the covers, leaving his boxers behind as well. He padded to the bathroom as quietly as possible, knowing Tommy probably wouldn't hear him.  
  
  
  
He pushed the door open gently; Tommy had not closed it properly, and stepped into the steam. Jason shook his head. Tommy loved hot showers and this one was about to get hotter.   
  
  
  
Letting the door shut behind him, but careful not to let it shut all the way, Jason crept towards the shower. He reached out his hand to ease back the curtain...  
  
  
  
"Gotcha!" Tommy exclaimed, pulling back the curtain with a grin.   
  
  
  
"GAH!" Jason stumbled and only Tommy's hand shooting out to grab him kept him from stumbling over the towel on the floor. Jason scowled, "Dammit Tommy! Are you trying to kill me?!"  
  
  
  
Tommy just shook his head and laughed. "You're the one trying to pull a 'Psycho' on me. Haven't you figured out you have no luck with showers yet?"  
  
  
  
"I wasn't planning to surprise you that way," Jason grinned evilly, "but maybe I'll just go back to bed now..."  
  
  
  
"Oh, and what were you planning to do?" Tommy asked, completely ignoring the last comment. There was no way in hell Jason was going through with that, his anatomy was giving him away.   
  
  
  
Jason stepped into the shower, finding Tommy's lips and kissing him hard. He smirked at the flush on his lover's face when he pulled away and leaned in to whisper in his ear, "Make you late..."  
  
  
  
Jason made short work of his lover, and Tommy soon sank to the bottom of the tub with him.   
  
  
  
"Helluva way to make me late," Tommy chuckled, kissing Jason's temple as they held each other under the spray.   
  
  
  
Jason grinned, "Just wait until after the practise..."  
  
  
  
*****  
  
  
  
Jason watched as Tommy climbed into his car, glancing up and waving as he did. He had been right. It was really boring hanging around the track just waiting while Tommy talked to his uncle, and the mechanics, and the sponsors...  
  
  
  
Now, at least, he would get to see Tommy drive. He had only seen him drive a few times, the races were normally held in places he couldn't get to or when he just couldn't make it. These were just practice laps, the race wasn't until tomorrow, but he had come along anyway.  
  
  
  
It was going fine, if tediously, until Tommy's second lap. He was on the inside, when his car swerved suddenly and his voice came over the radio, "I'm losing control!"   
  
  
  
Jason felt his heart stop as he watched, helpless to do anything, as Tommy swerved again and tried to break. His car spun out of control and he vaguely heard yelling over the radio before it crashed into the wall. His ears filled with a seemingly endless roar and he couldn't seem to remember how to breathe. His lungs felt locked, as if letting go of his breath would bring the world crashing down around him.   
  
  
  
He watched, his mind gone blank, as the paramedics rushed to the car, vaguely realizing it had to be serious by how frantically they called for an ambulance and stretcher. He watched as Tommy was cautiously extracted from the vehicle, unconscious and bloody. He couldn't take his eyes off the horrible sight and his whole body felt like concrete.   
  
  
  
Then John was talking to him, telling him to move, getting him to run. Jason did numbly, wondering why he wasn't feeling more... of anything.   
  
  
  
"Come on. If we hurry you'll be able to get in the ambulance with him." John was saying, "Come on now, that's it. I'll let his parents know. I'll take care of everything. You just take care of him."   
  
  
  
Then Jason was getting into the ambulance, face aghast as he saw Tommy's still form. The doors closed and they were on their way almost before he could think to sit down, eyes still riveted to his lover. He didn't catch most of what the paramedics were saying, the roar still obscuring his hearing, but what he made out was not good.   
  
  
  
It passed in a rush, the ride to the hospital. He could barely keep up as Tommy was unloaded from the ambulance. He stayed with him until someone held him back, asking him questions about Tommy's medical history, shuffling him to the waiting room to fill out forms, getting him to call Tommy's parents, then telling him Tommy had been rushed to surgery.   
  
  
  
A nurse came and led him to the OR waiting room. He could wait there, she had said, and someone would come by to let him know what was happening. So he waited.  
  
  
  
And waited.  
  
  
  
And waited.   
  
  
  
He eventually realized no one was coming back. He checked the nurses station frequently to hear the same thing. "Critical. I can't say anything more unless you're family."  
  
  
  
He tried to explain that he was family but the nurse shook her head sadly and told him she didn't have anything else to tell him. Soon the nurses just shook their heads when he stood up to approach, tired of saying the words or tired of not having more words to give him.   
  
  
  
Dimly Jason realized he was trembling, even fainter was the idea that time was passing. He wasn't sure how much exactly. There was a clock but every time he tried to check it, it was too fuzzy, unreadable through his sheen of tears that wouldn't fall but also wouldn't go away.   
  
  
  
He had stood up, attempting to check the nurse's station again, when a hand touched his shoulder and he turned to be enfolded in Sarah's arms. He shuddered once, then forced himself to listen to what she was saying, willing the roar to dim enough to hear his almost mother-in-law speaking.   
  
  
  
"...as soon as we could. We caught the first flight available. How is he?"  
  
  
  
"Critical. Still in surgery. They won't tell me anymore. I keep checking..." Jason trailed off, oblivious to how shaky his voice was.   
  
  
  
Sarah pulled back, looking at him carefully and steered him back to his seat. "Let Tom go check, dear. How long have you been here? No one's told you what's wrong?"   
  
  
  
Jason shook his head numbly. "I don't know. No. He has to be all right. He has to be."   
  
  
  
"Tom will find out. Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be okay," Sarah lied, swallowing her own fears for Jason's sake.   
  
  
  
"They've called for the doctor," Thomas reported, taking the seat across from his wife. "He's been out of surgery for over an hour but hasn't regained consciousness yet. They're cautiously optimistic but won't know anything for certain until he wakes up."  
  
  
  
Jason seemed to crumple a bit at the news, mostly from relief that Tommy had made it out of the surgery, partly because he was reaching the end of his endurance. Sarah exchanged a look with her husband as Jason sank further into the uncomfortable chair. She opened her mouth to speak to him when a short, slightly overweight, bald man walked into the room carrying a clip board and wearing a clean white coat.   
  
  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Oliver?" He asked. 


	12. Answers

Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Author's Note: Thanks as always to Mandi for being an awesome, awesome, AWESOME beta.   
  
Also, I forgot to mention this when it actually happened the first time but I'll mention it now. This story is going to span quite a few years so there will be some larger jumps in time. The first one was the all phone convo chapter. The birthday Tommy celebrated a few chapters back was his 23rd b-day, k?  
  
Chapter 13  
  
"Yes. Are you Tommy's doctor?" Thomas asked, eager for more information about his son. "How is he? What's wrong with him?"  
  
"Yes, I'm Dr. Fluder and I'm in charge of your son's case. There isn't too much to worry about. He's a very fortunate young man. I can't understand these race car drivers," the doctor told them bluntly. "He is lucky more damage wasn't done. He was in surgery for a short time because we were very concerned he was bleeding internally, his left side is quite bruised, but we found he was not. His left leg is broken, he has a concussion and he has some superficial bruising and scrapes but nothing to really worry about."  
  
Thomas swallowed hard. "Oh thank God."  
  
"He will need some physical therapy after the cast comes off," Dr. Fluder replied.   
  
"May we see him?" Sarah asked, her voice hoarse.  
  
"Yes. He is in the ICU. We will be keeping him there for another day, the anaesthesia has not quite worn off yet. He is still unconscious, but that is nothing to worry about. You are allowed 10 minutes each per hour of visiting time until he is moved out of the ICU," Dr. Fluder answered disinterestedly, glancing at his watch.   
  
"Thank you," Sarah replied, her tone somewhat chilled. She stood, pulling Jason to his feet with her, intending to start towards the ICU.   
  
"Only family are allowed into the ICU area," The doctor told them, with a hint of disgust in his tone.   
  
Sarah immediately looked at Jason, expecting an outburst. Jason just looked dazed. His eyes were slightly glazed and he had a confused, grief struck expression on his pale face. She knew he had been there since they brought Tommy in but she hadn't realized just how long that time had been for the young man to sit there worried and alone and without a clue as to what was happening to his lover.   
  
He wasn't legally family, though he and Tommy had been living together for the past five years. The hospital staff did not have to release any information to him if they chose not to do so. The doctors could ignore his presence and they had. The bewildered, hurting young man had simply been pushed aside.  
  
Sarah's blood boiled at the thought. Jason had seen everything. He had watched his lover's car crash into the wall, had been with him in the ambulance because of John's intervention, and had known that the injuries were serious. He should have been checked over and possibly been treated for shock but instead he was sitting alone in the waiting room! He still looked too pale and shaky.   
  
"He is family, Goddamnit!" Sarah began with a roar, turning on the surprised doctor with a biting tone.   
  
Thomas was as livid as his wife was and would have had a few choice words for the doctor is she had not beaten him to it. Instead, he looked at his son's boyfriend and put a steadying hand on his shoulder. Jason was not really registering what had just happened or he would have been outraged about it as well. All Jason had managed to get out of the comment was that he still could not get to Tommy. He was too tired and worried to think of anything but getting to his lover's side.  
  
"I don't get to see him?" Jason asked his voice soft and slightly hoarse with strain. Sarah and the doctor did not notice their voices had risen to too high a volume.  
  
"We're working on that," Thomas assured him. "If there's a way to get you in we'll find it."   
  
Before the situation became so volatile that a punch was thrown or Sarah was ejected from the hospital they were saved by a page. The doctor was being called down to the ER. He looked like he was about to call security to have at least Sarah escorted off the premises when a nurse, who had watched the scene unfold, stepped forward.  
  
"I'll take care of this for you, Dr. Fluder," She offered.  
  
"Very well," He responded as he aimed a scowl and a glare in Sarah's direction. He turned with a cape like flourish of his lab coat and stalked off.  
  
Sarah's eyes narrowed at the middle-aged nurse, if they thought she was just going to back down about this then they had another thing...  
  
"Come with me please," the nurse requested quietly.   
  
Sarah folded her arms across her chest. "We're not going anywhere until we all get to see Tommy!"  
  
The nurse smiled faintly. "It will be hard to see him when you're in the waiting room and he's in the ICU. Follow me, please."  
  
Sarah and Thomas exchanged looks, then followed the nurse, Sarah clasping Jason's hand, Thomas' hand on his back. Sarah just looked at the nurse, daring her to protest.  
  
"You can find the ICU by following the red dots on the floor," was all she said, pointing out the system the hospital had to help visitors figure out where they were going.  
  
The ICU waiting room was just outside the double doors that led to the quiet ward. Sarah and Thomas went in to see their son first, as the nurse made discreet inquires to the other stuff before letting Jason in as well. Sarah gave him a quick hug, before she and Thomas went to keep a look out for Dr. Fluder, not knowing the nurse has already set up for the nurses at the front desk to call to the ICU if he was coming.   
  
The nurse, Sally, kept half an eye out the door and half an eye on the reason she was bending the rules. The ICU nurses would not make a peep of protest, that she was sure of. They knew love and devotion when they saw it and all those who had seen Jason sitting in the waiting room had quickly warmed to him. Anyone who had not seen him there could have no doubts watching him now.   
  
He stood awkwardly at Tommy's bedside, nearly scared to touch him lest he hurt his lover. Knowing that his time was limited, he took the limp hand gently, almost reverently, and stroked the dry skin with his thumb. He closed his eyes against the onslaught of tears, keeping enough composure that only a few managed to slip down his pale face and leaned close, whispering something in Tommy's ear that was inaudible even in the din of the room.  
  
Sally hated having to tell him when it was time for him to go. She could not let him stay any longer. If Dr. Fluder found him there would be hell to pay. She touched his arm softly to let him know the time was up.   
  
He nodded once to her before turning back to Tommy for a moment more. She watched his trembling fingers ghost over a few strands of the long hair before he leaned down and touched his lips tenderly to Tommy's forehead.   
  
Sally delivered him straight into the hands of the Olivers, who were waiting for him. She fixed them with her stern gaze, enough to make even Sarah know she meant business, and ordered, "You get some food and a good rest in him before I see him back here. You take care of him so he can take care of the one in there. We'll see about getting him in again later but I can't make any promises."   
  
She looked at Jason, who seemed to be winning his battle against breaking down. She squeezed his hand once. "You can't help him if you're a mess. We'll take good care of him while you look after yourself, I promise."  
  
Jason only nodded. Tommy was okay, at least kind of. He would be okay. He looked awful but he would be okay. He would be okay.   
  
Sarah noticed Jason had gone beyond processing reality first. She hooked her arm through his and steered him to the parking lot where their rental car waited. Thomas quickly made arrangements with the nurses before following them. They could not help their son in any other way than making sure his lover didn't simply collapse while waiting to see him again.   
  
Jason quickly showed just how utterly exhausted he was. He fell asleep leaning against the car door. Thomas had to gently shake him awake when they reached the hotel to get him inside.  
  
Jason collapsed into bed, taking off nothing more than his shoes out of habit. He curled up on his side, vaguely noticing that someone was putting a blanket over him and affectionately brushing back his mussed hair. He barely realized he had gotten back to the hotel. There was a deep unsettled feeling in his stomach, an aching he knew he would not be able to get rid of until he could look into those soft brown eyes again.   
  
He had to ignore it long enough to sleep. Both his mind and body were clamouring for rest. The day, days, had been too hectic, too long, too emotionally charged for him to keep going any longer.   
  
Thomas woke him up only a few hours later, a deli sandwich and a coffee in hand. Sarah and Thomas would have insisted he slept for much longer than that but they had had a phone call from the hospital to inform them Tommy was showing signs of waking. If Jason was not there for that neither their son nor his lover would be in good shape.   
  
Jason had not realized how hungry he was until he took the first bite of that sandwich at Thomas' urging. He wolfed it down on the way to the hospital, glad when Thomas silently passed him another one from a bag in the front seat. By the time, they arrived at the hospital he looked and felt better than when he had left, even if he needed more sleep soon.   
  
When they got to the ICU they found Dr. Fluder outside the doors, yelling red-faced at a nurse about calming "that new patient" down. From what Jason could understand, which wasn't much, he was still a bit foggy, was that Tommy was panicking, almost to the point of making himself sick, because no one would tell him where Jason was.   
  
"What the hell is going on?!" Thomas boomed.  
  
Dr. Fluder quickly turned his attention to Sarah and Thomas, who were both extremely angry, having overheard and understood even more than Jason had. Tommy was distraught, was not letting the nurses get near him, was going to make himself sick...  
  
"Your son," Dr. Fluder began, his red face twisted in a scowl, "is not being co-operative. He won't let anyone near him and keeps demanding to know where 'Jason' is."  
  
"Oh god, I have to see him," Jason whispered, his voice too quiet to be noticed in the battle going on around him.   
  
"Jason is right here," Thomas thundered, "and he is going to see him."  
  
Dr. Fluder's face twitched. "Only family are..."  
  
"Hang only family are allowed in!" Sarah told him. "The easiest way to get him to calm down is to let Jason see him. Otherwise, you'll have to sedate him and put excess drugs unnecessarily into his system. It's better for him if he calms down on his own. And if you don't allow that to happen you are not looking out for your patient, you're harming him and will be in violation of your Hippocratic Oath!"  
  
Dr. Fluder looked stunned as Sarah went on. "And if you think I'm going to let you get away with that you've got another thing coming. If you don't let this happen and stay out of Jason's way and hopefully transfer Tommy to another doctor's care then you better believe I will call you up on every charge I can. And don't you dare try to patronize me, I'm a nurse, I know how these things work!"  
  
As Dr. Fluder sputtered, trying to find a retort, Sally marched through the doors, grabbed Jason by the hand and pulled him into the ICU. Dr. Fluder did not follow; he still had his hands full with Sarah and Thomas.   
  
Tommy had managed, Jason wasn't sure how, to get himself half off the bed. His leg, encased in a bulky cast, was still on the bed, the rest of him was in the chair beside it. Most of the monitors that had been attached to his skin were gone, dangling from their machines. A nurse had unplugged them, just to stop the beeping from disturbing the other patients. He had also managed to remove one of his IVs.   
  
Jason didn't think, he just went to him. Tommy attempted to lash out at him, not seeing who it was at first, but Jason avoided the blow, grabbing him gently and holding him still. Tommy nearly freaked out but looked up before he did, his eyes slightly wild, and saw who it was.  
  
"Jase..." Tommy's voice was choked and he quickly buried his head in Jason's shirt.  
  
"Shh... I'm here, its okay." Jason held Tommy as gently as possible, knowing he had got to be hurting. "Calm down... Calm down..."  
  
"No one would tell me where you were, just that there had been an accident. I don't remember what happened and no one would tell me they just told me to be quiet and rest I'd be okay but no one would tell me if you were okay. I can't remember anything past last night, I thought you were hurt and they weren't telling me or... or worse! But you're okay... you're okay..." Tommy rambled, clinging to his lover.  
  
"Shh. I'm fine. I wasn't there. Your car spun out of control on the track. No one else was hurt, it's okay," Jason told him, looking up to see Sally and two other nurses approaching cautiously.   
  
"Jase... it hurts..." Tommy whispered, starting to sag against him. He had been running on adrenaline before and all the movement was catching up to him.  
  
"I know, you need to get back into bed. Are you going to let the nurses help?" Jason asked gently.  
  
"Yeah... Oh fuck, what did I do..." Tommy murmured, hissing in pain as he was eased back onto the bed.  
  
"Tore your stitches, among other things, that's what!" One of the nurses scolded, deftly inspecting his side. "A doctor is on the way; you just lay still and cooperate now!"  
  
Sally looked up at Jason. "You're going to have to leave while we reinsert the IV, fix his stitches and get the monitors hooked back up. I don't think you want to see it."  
  
Jason nodded, he already felt a bit light-headed from the whole experience. "Are you going to be okay if I step outside for a little bit?"  
  
Tommy nodded, wincing in pain. "You'll come back soon?"  
  
"As soon as they let me," Jason promised, brushing back his hair gently. He leaned in to kiss his sweaty forehead. "You've got to let the nurses take care of you though."  
  
"I will," Tommy murmured.  
  
Jason squeezed Tommy's hand then quickly stepped aside, letting the nurses fuss over Tommy. He slipped through the double doors, wanting to get out of the way, and found Sarah talking rapidly to a short blonde woman in what looked almost like a business suit. Thomas spotted him and drew him away from the two, pushing him gently into a plastic chair and handing him a cup of something warm.   
  
Jason sipped it cautiously. He wasn't sure he wanted more coffee and Sarah was always trying to get him to drink tea even though he hated it. She said it was good for him and gave it to him anyway. But the warm liquid in the cup was rich and chocolately. Cocoa, that he would drink. He took a bigger sip, trying to blank his mind and calm down before anyone noticed his hands were shaking.   
  
"You got him to calm down?" Thomas asked.  
  
Jason nodded, "Yeah. He didn't know what happened, he doesn't remember the accident or anything before it for awhile so he assumed I was in the accident with him..."  
  
"Ah," Thomas nodded his head, understanding.  
  
"Yeah, he calmed down when he realized I was there," Jason said.   
  
"Good." Thomas pointed to where Sarah was still talking. A young black woman in a white lab coat and blue scrubs had joined them. "Sarah gave Dr. Fluder hell. He stormed off and that woman came down to talk to her. I think the other one is the doctor who will now be in charge of his case."  
  
A few moments later the doctor proceeded down the hall and through the double doors. The blonde woman departed down the other end of the hall and Sarah came to join them not looking entirely happy.  
  
"They're filing our complaint and transferring Tommy to Dr. Gooding, the woman who just went in," Sarah sighed. "It is hospital policy to not allow anyone but immediate family into the ICU but there are exceptions, if there's no immediate family or in certain cases if the family makes allowances, which we did."   
  
"So what's happening?" Thomas asked.   
  
"Dr. Fluder will be reprimanded for overstepping his bounds and Jason is allowed to visit Tommy," Sarah shook her head. "Past that? Nothing."   
  
Thomas sighed and looked at Jason. The younger man looked too lost in his own thoughts to really listen to them after he heard the conversation wasn't about Tommy. He touched Jason's arm gently, bringing his attention back to them. Jason's eyes focussed on him, so much worry in them Thomas felt like hugging him, and knew he was looking at his son-in-law in everyway except legally.   
  
"When we get home, if you two want to, we'll draw up some papers that will make you two each other's next of kin and give you power of attorney over the other. I know you probably haven't thought of that, and understand you probably don't want to, but in situations like this having that legally done will help," Thomas offered, trying to be gentle about it.   
  
Jason paled slightly but nodded, his voice not quite steady when he spoke, "Thank you."   
  
"You're a good man, Jason," Sarah told him. "You make our son happy and we love you for more than that. We trust you with him and you're part of our family, no matter what anyone else says."   
  
Twenty minutes later, Dr. Gooding came back into the waiting room. She made her way directly to where they sat and promptly introduced herself, "I'm Dr. Stacey Gooding, I'll be looking after Tommy now, in case Sarah didn't tell you."   
  
"You must be Thomas," she shook his hand before turning to Jason and shaking his, "and Jason. I apologize for all the confusion."   
  
"As long as it's solved now," Thomas answered warily.   
  
"It is I assure you," Dr. Gooding said. "Tommy didn't do himself any favours by getting out of bed so soon. He tore his stitches, which I've repaired, and there will be bruising where he tore out his IVs. When he calmed down, he became aware of those things. He was given a shot for the pain before I fixed his stitches and we have him on a Demerol drip. Until we decrease the dosage, which will most likely be tomorrow, he'll be a bit out of it. Most of this he will probably remember only vaguely."   
  
"Can we see him?" Jason asked quietly.   
  
"Of course," Dr. Gooding replied, "but he does need his rest and the pain medication we've given him will help him sleep so it would probably be best if you didn't stay too long. He'll be more alert tomorrow."  
  
"Okay," Jason sighed softly, letting out the breath he didn't even realize he was holding in relief.   
  
He felt Sarah rub his back gently for a moment, "Why don't you go see him first, Jason? Just in case he falls asleep soon. There a few questions I'd like to ask Dr. Gooding."  
  
Jason nodded and slipped through the double doors. Sally was checking some readings when he entered but she finished quickly and smiled at him before excusing herself.   
  
"Hey," Jason said softly, not sure whether Tommy was awake or sleeping.   
  
Tommy's eyes opened part way and looked at him sluggishly. He smiled slightly when he saw who it was and reached out clumsily for Jason's hand. Jason grasped it gently, leaning over the bed. "You feeling better now?"  
  
"Yeah," Tommy whispered, leaning into Jason's touch as his lover stroked his cheek gently.   
  
"Good," Jason said quietly, watching as Tommy's eyes drifted shut. "You rest, okay? Concentrate on getting better, I'll take care of everything."  
  
"Mmm," Tommy mumbled, "love you."  
  
"I love you too, Tom." Jason forcefully kept his tears in check as he leaned down to brush his lips against Tommy's forehead. "Everything is okay now..."  
  
*****  
  
"I'm losing control!"   
  
Jason felt his heart stop as he watched, helpless to do anything, as Tommy swerved again and tried to break.   
  
"Jason! Help me!" Tommy cried as his car spun out of control.  
  
Jason felt his heart skip a beat as the car crashed into the wall and the radio went dead. He started running, needing to get to Tommy. Oh God, he needed to get to him.  
  
He was nearly there, he could see Tommy's pale face, see the stream of bloody running down his forehead and the trickle that fell from the corner of his mouth, when someone grabbed him and held him back. Jason fought against whoever it was, finally breaking free just as the car exploded...  
  
Jason screamed.   
  
He looked around, tears stinging his eyes and saw… his hotel room? Before he could process this new reality he was stumbling into the bathroom, bending over the toilet as the food Thomas and Sarah had all but forced into him for dinner emptied out of his stomach.   
  
Slowly, he sank back down, leaning against the tub, his hands pressed against his eyes. He was shaking, the bathtub cool against his overheated skin. It was just a dream...  
  
Jason sobbed once, bringing his knees up to his chest and resting his forehead against them, his hands still pressing against his face.   
  
It was just a dream... 


End file.
